MVD, Donor Network of AZ share important partnership

It’s so easy to register as an organ and tissue donor in Arizona…

All you have to do is check a box when you apply for a driver license or identification card (you can also sign up on the Donor Network of Arizona website).

That simple act has the potential to make a very huge difference, as illustrated in the video above.

“It’s hard for me to believe that someone would actually donate something that important to someone else,” says heart recipient and MVD employee Jimmie Willis. “I’m just so thankful.”

Important partnership

Implementing an easy registration process through MVD (again, all you have to do is just check a box) has upped the percentage of registered adults in Arizona from 8 percent in 2003 to 46 percent this year.

“Over 90 percent of those come through the Motor Vehicle Division,” says Donor Network of Arizona President and CEO Tim Brown in the video. “It’s magical to be connected to MVD. People, when they’re there, are checking the box and declaring their wishes, which we honor.”

Nearly 2,200 people in Arizona alone are waiting a life-saving organ transplant. Across the country, that number is just over 112,000. You can learn more about the efforts of Donor Network of Arizona on their website. Find more on ADOT’s partnership with the organization in this blog post from 2011.