Understanding and Supporting Public Information Needs About VCA Donation
Abstract
Background/Rationale: Reconstructive surgery plays an important role in reintegrating wounded Warriors back to their pre-injury way of life and is critical to their rehabilitation. However, some injuries sustained in combat, such as limb loss or devastating facial tissue injuries, cannot be treated with conventional reconstruction procedures (for example, scar revision or tissue expansion surgery). In recent years, hand, upper-extremity, and face transplantation has emerged as a viable treatment option for such patients and is quickly leading to a new era in transplantation. This type of reconstructive transplantation, called vascularized composite allograftransplantation (VCA), involves transplanting multiple structures (such as skin, bone, muscles, blood vessels, nerves, and connective tissues) onto a patient from an individual who has died. So far, VCA has had excellent functional and psychosocial outcomes, in fact exceeding those of prosthetic devices. However, in order to perform these life-changing and -saving procedures, VCA donors are needed. This is challenging because VCA donation is not currently a part of the standard organ and tissue donor registration process that someone would typically go through at his or her local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). On top of this, information about face, limb, uterus, and other VCA organ donation is often not included in public education materials. There have been few public awareness or social media campaigns on VCA, and DMV efforts to raise organ donor awareness have only focused on solid organ donation. As a result, many people are familiar with kidney, heart, lung, and liver deceased donation, but not VCA. There is a need to develop educational materials about VCA donation that can support the public’s information needs. In this proposed project, we will assess the availability and quality of existing information about VCA donation and develop educational materials that increase public knowledge, understanding, perceptions of comfort, and willingness to donate VCA organs. Once these materials have been developed, we expect to see improvements in public awareness and perceptions of VCA transplantation and increased organ availability as messages are disseminated nationally. Impact and Alignment with Focus Area: This research proposal addresses psychosocial considerations and challenges associated with VCA by improving knowledge about factors influencing donor registration and authorization. This study will support the ultimate goal of improving public awareness about VCA donation and how it can impact the quality of life for individuals who receive these transplants, primarily military Veterans with catastrophic injury. Increasing public awareness is important for increasing the demand for VCA and for increasing donation of VCA. Both are essential to grow VCA transplant programs nationally in a way that builds public trust and transparency in VCA. Military and Clinical Relevance: Approximately 1,600 U.S. Service members sustained amputations, and as many as 50 sustained catastrophic facial injuries, which left the Soldiers with devastating injury and loss in quality of life, during Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. The number of civilians who suffer similar injuries is even higher, with an estimated 2 million Americans living with an amputation. Increasing public awareness and willingness to donate VCA organs can improve organ availability and ultimately give more patients, particularly military Veterans recovering from traumatic injuries, access to these life-changing and -saving transplants. This research has some minimal risks: efforts to promote VCA donation and transplantation could foster negative perceptions of the transplant system among the public, possibly even jeopardizing past efforts to promote solid organ donation awareness and registration. However, based on initial studies of public opinion about VCA donation, we
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Oct 29, 2018
- Source ID
- W81XWH1810780
Entities
People
- Elisa J Gordon
Organizations
- Northwestern University
- United States Army