- Since 1994, the South Texas Blood & Tissue Center (STBTC) has been serving the needs of Texas communities with the life-saving gift of human tissue for transplant.
- Operating as the only American Association of Tissue Banks accredited full service program in Texas, STBTC maintains an extremely high standard of quality.
- More than 5,000 tissue graft components are distributed each year to help enhance people’s lives. Many are distributed to hospital patients in and around San Antonio.
- A common misconception is if a person is involved in an accident and his doctor knows he is a registered donor, the doctor will not try hard to save his life. Tissue recovery only takes place after all efforts to save the person’s life have been exhausted and the person has been declared legally dead.
- Every potential donation candidate is screened to determine suitability prior to approaching any family for donation consent. If the deceased is a candidate and the next of kin agree to donation, only then will our organization proceed with the recovery of tissue.
- Donated tissue includes heart valves, veins, ligaments, tendons, bone, skin and other soft tissue.
- Donation does not disfigure the body or change the way it looks at end-of-life ceremonies.
- No costs directly related to organ, tissue or eye donation are passed on to the family.
- Most mainstream, organized religions approve of tissue donation and consider it an act of charity.
- A single tissue donor can enhance the lives of more than 50 people.
- Once donated, some tissue can last five years before being transplanted.
- Although there are several people registered to donate, there is a critical shortage of tissue, organ and eye donation in the United States.
- Registering and talking to your family about your wish to donate tissue is the best way to ensure your wishes are carried out. Your next of kin will make the final decision.
- STBTC’s Tissue Services Department offers a grieving program for those who have lost a loved one. The Bereavement Education & Support Taskforce (BEST) has helped thousands of people cope with grief for more than 10 years.
- BEST programs were designed as an informal means of learning about the grieving process and knowing that people are not alone in this struggle.
- Each BEST program topic and presenter is carefully selected based on what participants tell us they want or feel they need to understand as they grieve.
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