Educating the public about the need for living kidney donors.

[hmysel]

Our 2nd Kidney Transplant Thursday is on November 11th.

What is Kidney Transplant Thursdays? On the 2nd Thursday of every month those in the community post information about the need for living kidney donors and you include information about you.

To learn more about Kidney Transplant Thursdays and how to post visit our website:

kidneytransplantthursdays.org

[Sophiebun11]

What a great idea! I hope it brings much more awareness.

🐇

[hmysel in reply to Sophiebun11]

Please participate, that's how we will bring awareness.

[PurpleKatisha]

Wow. I didn't know about this. Will do! I'm getting a transplant next year. And that's my birthday! 😘

[hmysel in reply to PurpleKatisha]

Happy Birthday, mine was Nov. 9th Please participate, that's how we will bring awareness.

[WYOAnne NKF Ambassador]

What a great idea!Just for your info: There are over 300 Kidney Advocates, through the NKF in the US that are educating our state and federal legislators regarding kidney education.

I am an Advocate in WY and are working in the state to pass the "Living Donor Protection Act". It protects our living donors from discrimination from the insurance companies raising their rates or not accepting them and allows them to use FMLA so they don't lose their job when they are out for the surgery.I think things are on the "upswing." We are talking with Federal legislators regarding home dialysis and kidney education country wide.

NKF says that 37 million people in US have kidney disease but only 10% know they have it. Imagine if people could find out early...maybe there wouldn't be the need for so many transplants.

When I had my transplant in 1999, there were 65,000 on the wait list. Today there is wait list of over 100,000

[hmysel in reply to WYOAnne]

Anne, yes, I'm aware of the NKF Kidney Advocates and the other initiatives you mentioned. NKF will be posting information on the Kidney Transplant Thursdays FB tomorrow. The initiative's goal is for the kidney transplant community to use their individual social media platforms to educate their followers about the need for living kidney donors. They are mostly in touch with the "choir," but if everyone aggregates their message on the Kidney Transplant Thursdays FB page, along with a national PR campaign to bring attention to the initiative, mainstream media will give the cause air time. That's what's really needed to educate the public...but unlike the $$millions spent on deceased donor education, that's not going to happen for living kidney donor education. Viral social media posts, individuals and organizations with name recognition are needed to capture the media's attention.