A few years ago, I posted about a very neat guy named Harvey Mysel, and an organization he founded to help people in need of a kidney transplant to find their own living donor – the Living Kidney Donor Network. LKDN’s mission is:
To educate people in need of a kidney transplant about living donation and to prepare them to effectively communicate their need to family members and friends.
The Living Kidney Donors Network encourages physicians to give earlier notice to patients to afford them more time to pursue living donation. This could increase the number of preemptive transplants, transplant performed before someone needs to be on dialysis.
Develop public awareness campaigns to promote a better understanding about living kidney donation.... The Gift of Love!
Harvey let me know about a unique opportunity – Living Kidney Donor Network webinars on “Having your donor find you”… Of course, it would have been nice if I would have passed this information on before two of the opportunities were fully subscribed – but here are the rest… And I’m sure if this is as successful as they may be, he will be offering more:
Living Kidney Donors Network Webinar
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 7:30 PM Central Time
Admission Closed/Fully Subscribed
Monday, February 8, 2010 at 7:30 PM Central Time
Admission Closed/Fully Subscribed
Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 7:30 PM Central Time
Click here to sign up
Monday, February 15, 2010 at 7:30 PM Central Time
Click here to sign up
The fear of asking someone to donate a kidney is the greatest barrier for pursuing living donation. In truth, patients rarely need to ask directly. Most living donors say they volunteered to donate once they heard about their family member or friend’s need. When surveyed after the transplant, living donors are quick to respond that they would donate again, without hesitation.
Webinar Overview
The Living Kidney Donors Network (LKDN) Webinar has two goals, to educate you about living donation and to teach you the skills to effectively communicate your need to family members and friends.
What You’ll Learn
The information discussed is divided into two main segments; the first educates you about living donation. The second discusses effective communication techniques you can use to let others know about your situation. The LKDN webinars are taught by kidney transplant recipients and donors. Peer assisted learning has proven to be a very effective model.
Educational Component
The more knowledgeable you have about living donation, the more confidence you’ll have in talking about it. Over the past few years, medical advances have totally changed the transplant process for the donor and the recipient. You will learn about these changes which will give you a new and more positive outlook on the whole transplant process.
How to Communicate Your Need to Others
Having the knowledge about living kidney transplants is important, combining that with good communication skills and information on how to let more people know about your need for a transplant will increase the likelihood of success.
Who Should Attend
Anyone who needs, or will need a kidney transplant will benefit from the seminar. If there is someone that wants to help you spread the word about your need, we call them Advocates, ask them to sign up for the webinar or have them attend with you.
How to Sign Up for the Webinar
The webinar is FREE. You can attend the webinar by using any PC (Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista) or Mac (Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer) that has broadband internet access. If you don’t have access, your local library may be able to help.
I’ve known Harvey for a while now. I’ve seen his passion for helping others help themselves when they are in need of a kidney. He received a lifesaving kidney transplant in 2006 and his kidney was donated by his wife. Since then, he has schooled himself in touching on family and friends to let them know of your need. Through his Living Kidney Donor Network, he is reaching out to others to share what he has learned.
As of this week, there are over 83,000 people listed and waiting for kidneys in the United States. Many of them will wait on the list for a deceased donor kidney for over 5 years. 4,500 will die every year waiting for a kidney. I’m confident that many lives will be saved because of Harvey’s efforts. If you’re listed and waiting for a kidney, or headed down that path – I’m sure these webinars would be worth your while.
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