Olympic medalist to raise organ
donation awareness
Winter
Olympic snowboarding medalist Chris Klug visited patients at
MUSC June 8 to raise awareness about organ donation. Klug, who speaks
nationally as an advocate of organ donation, visited the campus on
behalf of the Chris Klug Foundation (CKF), the Donor Dudes campaign and
the Transplant Experience program.A 2002 bronze medalist, Klug received a liver transplant in 2000 to treat a rare liver condition. He is the first transplant recipient to win an Olympic medal.
Olympic
snowboarding medalist Chris Klug signs a copy of his book, “To the Edge
and Back,” for Children's Hospital patient Rebecca Jackson. Klug is on
a mission to raise awareness of the importance of organ donations.The CKF mission is to promote lifesaving donation and improve quality of life for donors, donor families, and organ transplant candidates and recipients. Considering the impact that one donor can have in saving so many lives, CKF is focused on assisting organ donors, recipients and their families as they prepare and recover.
Donor Dudes is a national awareness campaign focused on spreading the lifesaving message of organ, blood and marrow donation to people in a fun and creative way wherever there is surf, snow or a place to skate. Aimed at informing high school and college students of the need for donation, Donor Dudes already has led blood, marrow and organ drives at more than 20 venues including high schools and colleges.
For more information on CKF or the Donor Dudes campaign, visit http://chrisklugfoundation.org/.
A key sponsor of Klug’s mission, Astellas Pharma US Inc., received national honors for its Transplant Experience program, which offers a variety of tools to help empower patients and caregivers to become active participants in their health care. Resources to guide patients through every stage of the transplant experience are provided, and the materials are created to meet patients’ specific needs. More information on the program is available at http://www.TransplantExperience.com.
Friday, June 15, 2007
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