Tennessee sees record year for organ donations in 2023

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WDEF) — The volunteer state lived up to its name by having more than 500 organ donors in 2023. These donors were able to save the lives of over 1,300 people.

“2023 was, thankfully, a record setting year. We had 506 organ donor heroes. That equals out to 1,369 organ transplants. That’s over 1,300 people’s lives that were saved,” said Dawn Benjamin, external affairs coordinator for the Tennessee Donor Services.

So, why was there a record set this year for organ donations? Dawn believes the ability to share information through social media has been a big factor in the success of finding donor matches.

“I really think it’s just more public awareness about the subject. More and more people have a connection to donation or transplantation by having a family member or a friend that’s been affected by it,” Benjamin said. “We actually estimate that one in three of us will have a connection sometime, whether it’s ourselves needing a transplant or knowing someone who does.”

But you might think to yourself, is this a good thing? While it’s a beautiful thing for people to be donating organs, it can make you question if there has been a decrease in health for people. Especially since kidneys are the leading organ for donations.

“85% of the national waiting list, those who are waiting on a lifesaving transplant, are people who are waiting on a kidney. Out of all the organs, and there are actually eight organs that can be transplanted, so the kidneys are where we have the greatest need. And we see that because we have more people being diagnosed with diabetes, particularly type 2 diabetes,” Benjamin added.

Now, since the new year has started, the organ donations are continuing to flood in and are on pace to break another record this year.

“In January, we had 50 organ donors. We have never had 50 organ donors in a month. So, we continue that uptick, which is wonderful. And we appreciate all those donor heroes and their families who made that decision,” Benjamin said.

Thank you to the heroes who were able to contribute to saving the lives for the ones that were in need of an organ donation.

For more information on how to become an organ donor, visit the Tennessee Donor Services website.