Orgtober Spotlight: HSOI – High School Outreach Initiative
The High School Outreach Program team visits Loretto College School in May 2024. Photo courtesy of HSOI
Orgtober, formerly known as October, is Organ Donation Education Month. Initiated by the Orgamites, the only global organ donation awareness program of its kind, Orgtober’s mission is this: to make students everywhere more aware of their amazing organs, then get more families talking about organ donation, and thereby, increase the amount of organ donors in the long term which will ultimately save countless more lives.
Bringing the powerful impact of organ donation and transplant to the high school classroom
In Canada, one organ donation education program that is a true standout is the High School Outreach Initiative in Organ Donation & Transplantation (HSOI) - currently active in the GTA and Ottawa.
Created by the University of Toronto Transplant Institute in partnership with Ontario Health-Trillium Gift of Life Network, a “dynamic duo” of experts (transplant recipient, living organ donor, or donor family member, and transplant health care professionals from the Ajmera Transplant Centre at UHN, SickKids Transplant and Regenerative Medicine Centre and St. Michael’s Hospital Kidney transplant program and a representative from the Ontario organ donation organization) are invited to visit high schools to share the facts along with personal stories about the powerful life-saving impact of organ donation and transplant.
“It’s terrific to see our youth quickly pick up the concept of organ donation and rally behind such a great cause. Clearly, our future is very bright!”
Presented in an informative, engaging and flexible way, students can learn in a classroom setting or a larger assembly-style space. Presentations are between 70 - 90 minutes in length and can also be adapted to varying class sizes with a built in Q&A. Schools /teachers can fill in an online form to request a presentation.
High School Outreach Initiative presentation in classroom.
“Today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders!” says Dr. Chia Wei Teoh, Director of the HSOI and the Kidney Transplant Program at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. “Through this program, we engage our youth to raise their awareness of the life-saving power of organ and tissue donation. Feedback from our speakers, participating teachers and students show that the presentations are highly engaging and stimulate lots of dialogue. By providing young people with the knowledge to make their own informed decisions around organ and tissue donation, we are empowering a new generation of Ontarians who can change lives!”
In 2023-24 alone, 116 presentations were delivered at 54 different schools engaging more than 4500 students. Building on over 10 years of successful engagement with students in the Greater Toronto Area, the HSOI program is now taking root in Ottawa.
In Feb 2021, an evaluation of the program was published in Pediatric Transplantation.
Engaging high school students about organ donation and transplantation: an evaluation of the High School Outreach Initiative (HSOI) program Cynthia Selvanathan, Olusegun Famure, Benedict Batoy, Anna Cocco, Stephanie So, Kathryn Breckbill, Galo Meliton, Andrea Norgate, Sang Joseph Kim, Vicky Lee Ng First published: 18 February 2021.
The evaluation found that the HSOI presentations are effective in improving the current attitudes and behaviors of secondary school students toward organ donation. It reported that, “the program can enhance the knowledge base and intents that youth have toward ODT (organ donation and transplantation), thereby empowering youth to make more informed decisions about registering as organ donors. The reported increase in knowledge, awareness, level of importance, intents to register, and willingness to communicate with their families about ODT indicates that the HSOI was successful in meeting its goals and objectives.”
Book an HSOI presentation online - https://www.torontotransplantinstitute.ca/hsoi.html
Find HSOI on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PowerofYouthHSOI/
Education Matters
Education is a key element for improving organ and tissue donation in Canada. The Organs & Tissues for Life Education Portal, introduced in 2022 by Canadian Blood Services in collaboration with Canada's organ and tissue donation community, offers age-appropriate, easy-to-access and easy-to-use teaching resources for educators to spark interest in, and conversations about, organ and tissue donation and transplantation.
Education is key to addressing young people’s concerns about organ and tissue donation. It can help them feel empowered to talk about donation with their families and equip them to make informed choices in the future. Teach it. Learn it. Talk about it. It's vitally important...
By fostering more open conversations about our remarkable organs, their health, and acts of kindness, we aim to encourage more families to discuss organ donation and share their choices with loved ones long before the need arises.
What is Orgtober?
Orgtober, formerly known as October, is now 'Organ Donation Education Month’– a full month dedicated to promoting organ donation education among students, teachers, and families across the world (starting in Northern Ireland and Canada). By highlighting the importance of organ donation and encouraging more people to consider registering as organ donors, we hope to create a worldwide movement that will impact generations to come and save countless lives too.
Discover educational tools for all grades and ages, visit learn.organtissuedonation.ca
To learn more about the Orgamites Education Program (K-8) and to download your free resources, visit Orgamites.ca
Why?
In Canada, more than 4,000 people are on the transplant waiting list, and hundreds die each year waiting for a donor. Choose to leave well so others can live well. Register to be an organ and tissue donor.
#MightyOrgamites #Orgamites #OrganDonation #CanadasLIfeline #LeaveWell #HSOI