Hospital partners
Nurses, physicians, administrators and other hospital staff members are vital in offering hope to the communities LifeGift serves. We partner with hospitals to continually improve government-regulated donation systems to help increase the number of donated organs and tissues available for transplant.
We also help train hospital staff members on all aspects of donation, from the appropriate identification and timing for referrals of potential donors to the medical maintenance of the donor and the recovery operation.
How does the donation process work?
The donation process is time-sensitive and complex, with various partners helping along the way to ensure every opportunity to save lives. Types of donation include organ donation, tissue donation, neonatal donation and living donation.
Our training program
LifeGift is committed to providing outstanding education and competency-based training to our team members at every stage of their career. In 2020 we launched LifeGift Institute for the Future of Transplantation (LIFT) – our premier professional development and training program that aims to raise the team’s expertise in a variety of topics and protocols.
In 2021, we expanded LIFT to include education for our partners as part of our commitment to providing training in- person or virtually. Topics spanned the entirety of the donation process, from donor referral through surgical recovery, as well as collaboration on creating a successful donation program.
LifeGift announces new physician training module
LifeGift is pleased to announce a partnership with the Gift of Life Institute to bring a new state-of-the-art virtual reality Determination of Brain Death and Family Communication Physician Training Module to physicians in our partner hospitals.
Determining brain death must be performed in accordance with individual hospital policies and AAN guidelines. These include completing all aspects of the bedside neurological exam, apnea test and ancillary testing without omissions or errors.
The Determination of Brain Death and Family Communication Physician Training Program (“BD Module”) is an eLearning and virtual reality training module. This program was developed in response to the variability that can be found in the determination of brain death. The training is designed to guide physicians through all components of determining death by neurologic criteria (brain death exam) and how to communicate the meaning and consequences of these tests effectively to a patient’s family.
The content is based on current national guidelines for determining pediatric and adult brain death by neurologic criteria, Determination of Brain Death/Death by Neurologic Criteria: The World Brain Death Project and can be used as an adjunct to the Neurocritical Care Society (NCS) Brain Death training. The following physicians served as consultants and subject matter experts to share their experience and expertise to assure information in the training is accurate and relevant:
- Dr. Joshua Levine, Professor of Neurology, Vice Chair for Clinical Operations, Chief, Division of Neurocritical Care, Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
- Dr. Monisha Kumar, Director, Neuro ICU Associate Professor of Neurology at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, and
- Dr. Wynne Morrison, Director, Justin Michael Ingerman Center for Palliative Care, Attending Physician, Critical Care and Palliative Care, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Professor, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Target Audience:
Adult and pediatric critical care physicians, intensivists, neurologists, neurosurgeons, trauma physicians and surgeons, fellows, and residents responsible for completing brain death evaluations.
Continuing Medical Education
Approved for 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
Have questions? Contact your donation systems specialist
Our team of experts and specialists are here to answer your questions, arrange education and provide support.
Discover helpful resources
Explore our comprehensive library of professional resources and knowledge tools through our monthly newsletters and other resources:
The Community Hospital Resource Guide
A vital guide for hospital senior leaders to develop impactful organ, eye and tissue donation practices.
Glossary of Donation Terms
This glossary is excerpted from the United Network for Organ Sharing.
Attestation Letter for Hospitals
Hospital Huddle Checklists
Sample Donation Policy
Compliance with federal, state, and regulatory agency requirements.