Midwest Transplant Network Communication Guidelines

WRITING TO TRANSPLANT RECIPIENTS

PROVIDE GENERAL INFORMATION
CLOSING YOUR CARD OR LETTER
MAILING YOUR CARD OR LETTER
QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE
WILL I HEAR FROM THE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT?
WILL I EVER BE ABLE TO MEET OR COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY WITH THE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT(S)?
ALLOW EXTRA MAILING TIME?

The decision to write to transplant recipients is a very personal one.

Sometimes, donor families choose to write to transplant recipients and their families to share information about themselves and their loved one. For some donor families, this sharing with the transplant recipient helps them in their grieving process. It is your choice whether or not you decide to write to the transplant recipients.

Midwest Transplant Network, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization selected by the federal government to manage all organ donations in the entire state of Kansas and the western two-thirds of Missouri.

Midwest Transplant Network supports written correspondence between transplant recipients and donor families. All correspondence is completely anonymous and identities are kept confidential.

If you would like to write to the transplant recipients, here is some information you may choose to include.

PROVIDE GENERAL INFORMATION:

Your loved one's first name only.
Your relationship to that person.
His or her job or occupation.
His or her hobbies or interest.
Your family situation such as marital status, children or grandchildren. (Do not include last names. )
Since the religion of the transplant recipient and his or her family is unknown, please consider this if you are including religious comments .

CLOSING YOUR CARD OR LETTER: top

Sign your first name only.
Do not reveal your address, city or phone number .
Do not reveal the name of the hospital.

MAILING YOUR CARD OR LETTER:

I) Place it in an unsealed envelope.
2) Include in the envelope on a separate piece of paper:

Your full name
Your loved one's full name
Date of the donation

Mail it to the Midwest Transplant Network at the following address:

Midwest Transplant Network, Inc.
Donor Family Services
1900 W. 47th Place, Suite 400
Westwood, KS 66205

QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE

WILL I HEAR FROM THE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT?

You may or may not receive a response from them. Many transplant recipients have said that they are overwhelmed with emotion and have difficulty expressing their gratitude in words. Others may take several months or even years before they feel comfortable writing to their donor family. They, too, are in a unique grieving process.

WILL I EVER BE ABLE TO MEET OR COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY WITH THE TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT(S)?

The Midwest Transplant Network will facilitate a donor family's request to receive unedited communication from their loved one's transplant recipient(s), when the following conditions have been met:
1) It is at least one year donation.
2) Each party has written to the other at least one time anonymously.
3) Both parties have expressed a desire to have non-anonymous communication.
4) The donor family member has the designated release form signed and notarized, and has returned it to the Midwest Transplant Network.

ALLOW EXTRA MAILING TIME: top

Midwest Transplant Network's Donor Family Services Coordinator will review your card or letter first to ensure confidentiality and will forward it to the clinical transplant coordinator at the transplant center. The transplant center will then send it to the recipient. Therefore, please allow extra time for your letter to reach the transplant recipient. It may take a few weeks after you've mailed it for the transplant recipient to receive it. If you need further information about writing to transplant recipients, please call the Midwest Transplant Network at (913) 262-1668. Midwest Transplant Network 1900 W. 47th Place, Suite 400 Westwood, KS 66205

Adapted by Midwest Transplant Network, Inc.
Westwood, KS
With permission from LifeSource of
Minneapolis, Minnesota
All rights reserved