Through this unprecedented time, Texas Organ Sharing Alliance (TOSA) is committed to continuing its mission of saving lives through the power of organ donation. In an effort to connect and communicate with our supporters and social media followers, TOSA has debuted a new series called TOSA Talks.
In this online segment, TOSA's Communications staff members interview experts across Central and South Texas speaking about topics relevant to the donation and transplant community. From "How is organ donation being facilitated during the coronavirus pandemic?" to "Tips on staying healthy during the pandemic," we ask the questions the community is seeking answers to with brief interviews.
TOSA Talks can be viewed on our social media platforms, which include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. Since it's debut, TOSA Talks has reached thousands of viewers.
November is National Donor Sabbath Month and at TOSA Talks, we're celebrating local leaders in the community who embrace organ, eye, and tissue donation. TOSA Talks, welcomed Javier Villalobos, City of McAllen Mayor, to discuss the importance of sharing your decision to be a donor with your loved ones.
October is Hispanic Heritage Month and Make A Difference Day, which is October 22. TOSA Talks welcomed Bexar County Precinct 2 Commissioner Justin Rodriguez to help us celebrate the rich culture of the Hispanic families in our services area by highlighting the difference we can all make as registered donors.
Would you like to be an organ donor? It's a simple question that can save a life. September is National DMV Appreciation Month and in this episode we visit with Mayor Pete Saenz of Laredo, one of the largest areas in TOSA's service area, to talk about how we can increase the percentage of donors with Donate Life Texas.
The effort to save and heal lives depends on hope, and to help celebrate the hope that donors give to individuals on the waiting list, we have collaborated with a San Antonio artist to construct a mural featuring a woman named Esperanza, who is the inspiration for our newest campaign. To share more about her artwork and how it can inspire Texans to become registered organ donors, we've spoken with muralist Crystal Tamez for our August episode of TOSA Talks.
Did you know teens under 18 can sign up to be life-saving organ donors? In this episode, San Antonio District 2 Councilmember Jalen McKee-Rodriguez to talk about youth education and organ donation.
June is Men's Health Month and on TOSA Talks, it's the perfect time to the encourage the men and young boys in our lives to eat healthy, stay active and sign up to save lives with Donate Life Texas. San Antonio lifestyle influencer Stephen Delgado visits with us to talk about the importance of men's health and being a registered donor.
For the first time ever, Donate Life Texas has launched a new campaign to help inspire Texans to sign up to save lives as organ, eye and tissue donors. In this episode, DLT Executive Director Chad Carroll discusses the campaign and other efforts being done to increase the number of registered donors in Texas.
To celebrate National Donate Life Month and in observance of National Pediatric Transplant Week, we visit with Amber Smith, mom of donor hero River who became a donor hero after a tragic accident. We learn more about how the littlest heroes can make a big difference.
For National Kidney Month, we're sitting down with TOSA's Hospital Services Director Katelin Nicholes to discuss the critical need for kidney donors and how TOSA is working with area hospitals to save more lives.
February commemorates Black History Month and provides the opportune time to raise awareness about organ and tissue donation within the black community. In this episode, we're visiting with South Texas Blood & Tissue Business Development Manager Kimberly Monroe to talk about Black health and wellness.
When a person suffers from cornea blindness, it can be the result of an injury, infection or even a disease. Their sight in many cases can be restored by receiving a cornea transplant from a deceased donor, and every year, about 50,000 corneal transplants are conducted with high success rates. In this episode of TOSA Talks, we're speaking with Jim Wagner the President and CEO of the San Antonio Eye Bank to learn more.
Texas Organ Sharing Alliance has a new partner with the Nationwide Organ Recovery Transport Alliance (NORA) who will facilitate the transport of TOSA staff and life-saving organs for patients in need. Hear from NORA's CEO Don Jones talk about how this program will help TOSA achieve it's vision of an organ for every patient on the waiting list.
Every September, the donation and transplantation community come together to thank staff at state Department of Motor Vehicle/Department of Public Safety offices for their partnership. By asking customers if they want to be registered organ donors, they are saving lives. In this TOSA Talks episode, we visit with Donate Life Texas Executive Director Kim Charles to discuss the work of Texas DMV/DPS workers.
With over 60 percent of the people on the U.S. waiting list coming from multicultural communities, we wanted to explore what keeps some families from saying "Yes" to donation as we observe National Minority Donor Awareness Month. For this episode, TOSA's Family Services Supervisor Bianca Esquivel is back to talk about how people in minority communities can save lives.
TOSA's new vision statement, "An organ for every patient on the list," has resulted in several new improvements at TOSA. In this episode, members of TOSA's leadership explain the changes being made and how they'll help save lives.
From skin grafts for burned victims to heart valves to help patients with congenital heart problems, the field of tissue donation is saving lives. Learn more as tissue donor family volunteer Don Uecker shares his experience and United Tissue Resources Public Relations Manager Lemuel Bradshaw explains the need for tissue donors.
Approximately 2,000 children in the U.S. need a life-saving organ transplant. In this episode, we visit with Transplants For Children Parent Liaison Laura Rivera and her son, Ricky, a heart recipient, to talk about the obstacles kids face as transplant patients.
The Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas registry is one of the fastest-growing in the nation. In this episode of TOSA Talks, we sit down with DLT Executive Director Kim Charles to learn more about the registry and how it plays a crucial role in saving lives.
Most organ donations occur after the donor has died. But when it comes to kidney and liver donation, we can impact lives as a living donor and still lead a normal life. To celebrate National Kidney Month, we visit with Dr. Philip Thomas of the DHR Health Transplant Institute and living donor Lissette Valdez walks us through her decision to Donate Life.
In March 2020, we celebrated the first anniversary for the Center for Life, a first-of-its kind facility in Texas dedicated to the recovery of organs and tissue for transplantation. In this episode of TOSA Talks, we sit down to discuss how the first year went and how our partnership with University Hospital is saving lives.
As we recognize the important role of African-Americans in our country's history during Black History Month, it's also an opportune time to educate and raise awareness about the unique challenges African-Americans face on the transplant waiting list. In this episode, we'll hear from a heart recipient in Austin who received the Gift of Life and Dr. Clive Callender from the National MOTTEP will shed some light on how multicultural communities play a critical role in the transplant system.
It's a special Sweetheart Edition of TOSA Talks for National Donor Day, the observance where everyone is reminded to "share the love" and sign up as an organ, eye and tissue donor. In this episode, heart recipient Travis Martin shares his story before playing a special version of the Newlywed Game with his wife, Pamela.
Despite the pandemic, 2020 was a remarkable year for saving lives through the power of organ donation. We are grateful to the 189 donor heroes and their families for giving the Gift of Life. Learn more about our 2020 results in this episode.
For transplant recipients, every day is a gift thanks to an organ donor. Recipients whose second chance at life has lasted 25 years and longer have created the Quarter Century Club to advocate for organ and tissue donation while also offering one another support. On today's TOSA Talks, we'll meet two recipients who've had their transplants for over 40 years!
Volunteers for Texas Organ Sharing Alliance are critical to the mission of saving lives. From Waco to the Rio Grande Valley, these individuals share their experiences to inspire others to sign up as organ donors. In this episode, learn how this group is making a difference.
Co-morbidities like diabetes, chronic kidney and heart disease are placing Texans at a higher risk for hospitalizations if they contract COVID-19. These same underlying conditions disproportionately affect Latinos who can find themselves in need of a life-saving organ transplant. Dr. Rogelio Saenz talks with TOSA Senior Communications Coordinator Clarissa Thompson about the challenges Latinos face in the battle against COVID-19 and the implications they can have on donation and transplantation.
Texas Organ Sharing Alliance is a proud participant in the Workplace Partnership for Life program that supports hospitals' efforts to raise awareness and register donors within hospital facilities and their communities. Hospital Services Coordinator Jesse Lara and Valley Regional Medical Center Frank Acevedo, a kidney recipient, talk about the program.
One in three American adults are at risk of kidney disease that can lead to end-stage renal disease and a need for a kidney transplant if left untreated. Mary Albin, the executive director of the End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Network of Texas, discusses their resources and how patients can thrive while battling kidney disease.
Día De Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, honors and celebrates loved ones who have passed. To learn more about this holiday and how you can celebrate at home, we spoke with Nikki Diaz, the Education Associate at the Mexic-Arte Museum in Austin.
Children in need of heart care or a transplant no longer have to travel outside of Central Texas to get treatment. Dell Children's Hospital has opened the first Pediatric Heart Transplant Program in Austin. Here we sit down with a heart muscle specialist and a patient on the waiting list to talk about the importance of this facility.
TOSA's External Operations Liaison Ismail Shamas talks about how medical advancements have made it possible for high-risk donors to save lives.
South Texas Blood & Tissue Center has worked hard to meet the critical need for blood while assisting in a search for a cure to the COVID-19 virus. Beyond blood donations, they also play a key role in tissue donation. Ashley Frolick, Communications Coordinator with South Texas Blood and Tissue Center, discusses more.
Families who participate in the organ donation process when their loved ones passes away are also heroes, joining Texas Organ Sharing Alliance in our mission to save lives through the power of organ donation. TOSA's Donor Family Services Manager Adriana Almanza discusses resources available for donor families in Central and South Texas.
San Antonio-based artist Janie Villarreal McClinche joins TOSA Talks this week to talk about her collaboration with us to educate multicultural communities about the power of organ donation.
Martha Keiser, a volunteer who advocates for organ donation in honor of her daughter Krizia, who saved lives as a registered organ donor, joins us to talk about the importance of organ donation in multicultural communities in observance of National Minority Donor Awareness Month.
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, our staff remain dedicated to organ donation. On this week's episode, meet Organ Recovery Specialist Lisa McCoid who explains her role in the mission to save lives through the power of organ donation.
Grief & Empathy expert Lisa Keefauver with Reimagining Grief discusses how to cope through grief and find healing during these challenging times.
June is Men's Health Month, and it's a time to encourage men of all ages to think about their health and take the necessary actions to take care of themselves. TOSA Communications Coordinator Amanda Garcia speaks with two-time heart transplant recipient Lemuel Bradshaw who knows how important it is to make health a priority.
From shrinking your waistline to building up your immune system, registered dietician Jan Tilley with JTA Wellness speaks with TOSA Senior Communications Coordinator Clarissa Thompson about nutritional health tips.
TOSA Communications Coordinator Amanda Garcia speaks with Jennifer Milton, chief administrative officer for University Transplant Center, about the opening of the Center for Life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
TOSA Senior Communications Coordinator Edwina P. Garza speaks with Noe Gonzalez, who received a liver transplant in August 2019, about how transplant recipients are coping with COVID-19.
TOSA Communications Coordinator Amanda Garcia meets with TOSA Family Services Coordinator Bianca Esquivel to talk about how our team is continuing our mission of saving lives through the power of organ donation as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.
TOSA's Corporate Educator & Safety Officer Jessica Cortez shows you how to properly wear a mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
TOSA Senior Communications Coordinator Clarissa Thompson sits down with Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Philip Ponce from the University Health System to talk about how COVID-19 is affecting our communities.
TOSA President & CEO Joseph Nespral sits down with Communications Coordinator Amanda Garcia to talk about the novel coronavirus and organ donation.