LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas  (Feb 14, 2023) – ARORA, the largest organ, tissue and eye recovery agency in Arkansas, recovered more organs in 2022 than in any other year in its three-decade history, surpassing its 2021 record year.

The agency reported 149 organ donors and 347 organs transplanted in 2022, representing a 49% increase in donors and 10% increase in transplants from 2021. It represents an increase in donors of over 130% above the years 2018-2020, when the agency reported an annual average of 64 organ donors and more than 200 transplanted organs.

These data made ARORA one of the country’s fastest improving organ procurement agencies during a period of rapid and dramatic transformation in the industry.

“Thanks to the generosity of Arkansans, the hard work of the ARORA staff, and the performance of our organization’s partners in the medical community and beyond, we were able to increase the number of life-restoring donations in our state,” said ARORA CEO Mark Tudor. “For this milestone, we owe it to individuals and families who made the selfless act of authorizing donation.” 

Many organs recovered by ARORA stay here in Arkansas and are provided to recipients being treated at one of the three transplant centers in the state: UAMS, Arkansas Children’s and Baptist Health.

“Our successes in forging a more effective recovery process in partnership with our medical partners directly translate to more organ, tissue and eye transplants for Arkansans and others, which restore and save lives,” Tudor said.

ARORA and its hospital partners have created a centralized donor management system. Tudor said this allows ARORA to transfer authorized organ donors from hospitals across the state to a central facility and provides ARORA immediate access to experts in donor management and the ability to complete necessary testing in a fast and efficient manner. The goal is to maximize the gift the donor has made to save as many lives as possible.

The announcement of ARORA’s record year coincides with National Donor Day, an annual observance on February 14 dedicated to spreading awareness and education about organ, eye and tissue donation. National Donor Day recognizes those who have given and received the gift of life–not only through organ, eye and tissue donation–but also other lifesaving human gifts, such as blood, marrow and plasma. 

There are more than 300 Arkansans on the waiting list in the state and more than 100,000 people in the United States waiting for a life-saving organ transplant. 

“Donation offers a legacy of hope to donor families; hope that their loved one’s generosity makes a positive impact in people’s lives – helping a heart recipient to walk his daughter down the aisle, allowing a cornea recipient to see the smile of her grandchildren, and a tendon recipient to stay active on her high school volleyball team. These are just a few examples of the thousands of lives touched by donors each and every year,” ARORA Manager of Family Aftercare Beth Cameron said. “A donor’s gift reaches beyond the recipients, to their families and communities, such that the true impact can never fully be known.”

In addition to organ and tissue recovery, ARORA provides support for donor families and recipients even years after donation, and the organization also works toward educating the community about donation, encouraging individuals to consider registering to become organ, tissue and eye donors. ARORA also has grown its staff to achieve increased coverage across Arkansas while stepping up education on donation through a statewide public information campaign to help raise awareness. 

Many Arkansans are aware that they can register to become an organ and tissue donor when renewing their driver’s licenses at the DMV. Individuals may register online at www.arora.org/donatelife, or by visiting a registration kiosk at one of several locations across the state. 

To learn more about ARORA and organ and tissue donation, go to www.arora.org or follow ARORA on Facebook at Donate Life Arkansas, Instagram @donatelifearkansas, TikTok and Twitter @donatelifeAR.

 

FACTS & STATISTICS
Arkansas statistics: 

• Roughly 300 Arkansans are on the transplant waiting list.
• 62% of eligible Arkansas residents are registered as organ donors, the 16th highest registration rate in the nation.

U.S. statistics: 

• More than 100,000 people are on the national waiting list for organ transplant. Another person is added every 9 minutes.
• One organ donor can donate up to eight transplantable organs: heart, lungs, pancreas, kidneys and small intestine. One tissue donor can impact 100 or more lives, through the gifts of skin, cornea, ligaments, cartilage, vein, bone and heart valves. 
• In 2021, nearly 20,400 donors brought new life to recipients and their families nationwide.
• 6,000 people die each year (on average 17 people each day) because the organs they need are not donated in time.

 

About ARORA
ARORA was established in 1987 as a nonprofit, accredited organ procurement agency. Serving 64 counties across the state, ARORA is headquartered in Little Rock and has a satellite office in northwest Arkansas. ARORA’s mission is to restore lives through the recovery of organs and tissue for transplant.