Reading Hospital will celebrate its commitment to building awareness and support for organ donation by raising a "2023 Hospital & Healthsystem Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) Donate Life Challenge" flag on Wednesday, April 12, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Fifth Avenue entrance. Reading Hospital is honored to join HAP and Gift of Life Donor Program in encouraging all people to register as organ, tissue, and cornea donors. Remarks will be made by Barbara Romig, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, Chief Nursing Officer for Reading Hospital and Tower Health, and Jason and Amanda Hornberger.
The Hornbergers will share their personal stories with organ donation. Amanda is part of a donor family and Jason is a two-time living donor. The flag will be raised by Eileen Ravert, RN, and Cheryl Machemer, RN, coordinators of the Reading Hospital 2023 Donate Life Challenge.
"Organ donation is so important because 17 people in the US die each day while waiting for a donor," said Dr. Romig. "I encourage everyone to consider becoming an organ donor and talk to their loved ones about their wish to do so. Being an organ donor is a selfless act that provides those in need and their families the priceless gift of life.”
Some important facts about organ, tissue, and cornea donation:
- Anyone can be a potential donor regardless of age, race, or medical history.
- More than 5,000 children and adults in the region await life-saving organ transplants. Thousands of others could benefit from life-enhancing tissue transplants.
- With more than 90,000 people across the nation awaiting a kidney, it is the organ in greatest demand, followed by liver, heart and lungs.
- Because conditions such as diabetes and hypertension are often more prevalent in the minority community, these individuals make up more than 50 percent of those on the national organ transplant list.
Individuals are encouraged to talk with family members and friends about registering as a donor. One organ donor can save up to eight lives and a tissue donor can improve the lives of more than 100 others. For more information and to register to become an organ donor, visit www.donors1.org.
About Reading Hospital
Reading Hospital is the flagship, Magnet Recognized, acute care hospital of Tower Health. Located in West Reading, Pa., Reading Hospital is a 697-bed hospital that is home to many top-tier specialty care centers, including Reading HealthPlex, McGlinn Cancer Institute, Miller Regional Heart Center, Emergency Department, Level I Trauma Center and Beginnings Maternity Center, which houses the region's only Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). With more than 1,000 physicians, specialists, and advanced practice providers across 49 locations, Reading Hospital has been recognized for its quality outcomes and clinical expertise across services lines. It is listed as one of America's 100 Best Hospitals for four consecutive years (and moving up to America’s 50 Best Hospitals in 2022) and received a 5-Star Rating from CMS two years in a row. For more information, visit towerhealth.org.