The rates of organ donations have been on the rise in Wisconsin with the help of a collaboration between the UW Health Organ Procurement Organization and hospitals throughout the state.
The Federal Government assigned OPO to work with over 104 hospitals in Wisconsin, Northern Michigan and the Rockford, Ill., area, encouraging the sharing of knowledge among executives.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Organ Transplantation Breakthrough Collaborative awarded 12 Wisconsin hospitals with medals of honor for mustering a 75 percent donation rate.
According to the UW Health website, the average in the UW Health OPO service area stands at 87 percent - greater than the national average of 70.7 percent.
Wisconsin residents are also contributing to the increase in donations by adding orange stickers to their licenses in response to the statewide Got Your Dot?"" campaign.
