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How to Engage Communities

Organ, eye, and tissue donation starts with awareness — and EMS professionals are uniquely positioned to lead the charge. Whether through a department-wide campaign, a single social media post, or wearing blue and green during National Donate Life Month, every action helps educate and inspire your community.

This page offers guidance on key messages, calls to action, and opportunities throughout the year to engage in meaningful donation awareness. For downloadable graphics, captions, posters, and other promotional tools, please visit the Organ Donation Toolkits for EMS Departments →

 

📣 Key Messages & Calls to Action

Every EMS provider and department has a role to play in promoting donation. Whether you're sharing information with your community or preparing your team to recognize and support donation opportunities in the field, having the right language matters. Below you'll find key messages for both the public and EMS staff, along with suggested calls to action to guide your outreach efforts. These messages are designed to educate, inspire, and help normalize organ, tissue, and eye donation across Wisconsin.

  • Register as a Donor: One person can save up to 8 lives and heal more than 75 others through tissue and eye donation. Register today at DonateLifeWisconsin.org or when renewing your driver's license.

  • The Need is Urgent: Over 100,000 people in the U.S. are waiting for a life-saving organ transplant. Every 10 minutes, a new person is added to the list. By saying YES to donation, you can give someone the chance to live.

  • Anyone Can Register: No matter your age or health history, anyone 15 or older can register as an organ, tissue, and eye donor. Don’t rule yourself out—medical professionals will assess your eligibility at the time of donation.

  • Talk to Your Family: Make sure your family knows your wishes about organ donation. Having this conversation can relieve your loved ones of difficult decisions later.

  • Donation Gives Back: When you become an organ, tissue, or eye donor, you leave behind a legacy of generosity and compassion, providing a second chance at life for others.
  • EMS Providers’ Role in Donation: EMS professionals may not promote organ donation directly, but your role is crucial in preserving the opportunity for donation. Proper documentation, ensuring unobstructed airways, and maintaining circulation can help potential donors save lives.

  • Heroes Saving Lives: Your efforts in the field contribute directly to saving lives through organ and tissue donation. Even if a patient cannot be resuscitated, your work ensures their potential as a donor is preserved.

  • Protocol is Key: Follow established organ preservation protocols for patients who meet donation criteria. Clear documentation of your resuscitation efforts, airway management, and patient condition can make all the difference.

  • Understanding the Donation Process: Use WEMSA’s education tools to build understanding and confidence in donation-related calls.
  • Register Today: Become a part of the life-saving process by registering as an organ, tissue, and eye donor. Encourage your family, friends, and community to do the same at DonateLifeWisconsin.org.

  • Honor Donors and Their Families: Recognize and honor the generosity of organ and tissue donors within your EMS department. Acknowledge their contributions to saving lives, and support donor families whenever possible.

  

🗓️ Organ Donation Awareness Calendar

Use this promotional calendar to plan campaigns, post on social media, and host events around donation milestones throughout the year.

 

The need for organ, eye and tissue donors is great. Join Donate Life America by participating in one of their many National Observances & Celebrations throughout the year! Together, through spreading the word and educating others about donation, we can take small steps each day towards saving more lives.  

  

National Donor Day – February 14, 2024

National Donor Day is an opportunity for EMS professionals to focus on all types of donation—organ, eye, tissue, blood, platelets, and marrow. Participate in or host blood/marrow drives and donor registration events. It’s also a day to appreciate and honor donors and loved ones who have given the gift of life, have received a donation, are currently waiting, or did not receive an organ in time.

National Donate Life Month – April

National Donate Life Month (NDLM) features an entire month of activities to encourage Americans, including those in the EMS community, to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors. It also honors those who have saved lives through the gift of donation. Celebrations throughout NDLM include:

    • Donate Life Living Donor Day – April 3, 2024
      Join the EMS community in thanking all living donors for their lifesaving generosity. Use Donate Life Living Donor Day social media graphics to share with your community and acknowledge the incredible contributions of living donors.
    • National Donate Life Blue & Green Day – April 12, 2024
      On this day, EMS professionals and the public are encouraged to wear blue and green and to engage in sharing the Donate Life message. Promote the importance of registering as an organ, eye, and tissue donor within your EMS networks and local communities.
    • Blue & Green Spirit Week – April  6–12, 2024
      Each day of the week leading up to National Donate Life Blue & Green Day is dedicated to a special theme. Recognize donors, volunteers, and healthcare heroes; give hope to those waiting; and engage the public in fun at-home activities. EMS professionals can use this week to highlight the critical role of donation in saving lives.
    • National Pediatric Transplant Week – April 21–27, 2024
      This week focuses on ending the pediatric transplant waiting list. EMS professionals can share innovative work and patient stories, honor donor families whose children have saved lives through donation, and celebrate milestones with recipient families. Collaborate with clinical partners and use social media to spread awareness. Donate Life America (DLA) would like to thank the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the American Society of Transplantation (AST),  American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS) and Transplant Families for their partnership in developing and promoting National Pediatric Transplant Week.

National Minority Donor Awareness Month – August

National Minority Donor Awareness Month is a collaborative initiative of  the National Organ, Eye and Tissue Donation Multicultural Action Group (NMAG) – American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), the American Kidney Fund, Association for Multicultural Affairs in Transplantation (AMAT), Association of Organ Procurement Organizations (AOPO), Donate Life America (DLA), Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA), Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA), National Minority Organ Tissue Transplant Education Program (MOTTEP) National Kidney Foundation (NKF), The Links, Incorporated, the Transplant Life Foundation, and the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) – to save and improve the quality of life of diverse communities by creating a positive culture for organ, eye, and tissue donation. Outreach activities during this month include events to provide donation education, encourage donor registration and promote healthy living and disease prevention to decrease the need for transplantation.

National DMV Appreciation Month – September

The DMV partnership remains the primary source of donor registrations. DMV and driver’s licensing partners are the people on the front lines of service who have helped register more than 140 million donors. National DMV Appreciation Month is a time for the Donate Life Community to say thank you and show its appreciation of DMV partners across the country through national and local events and outreach.

National Eye Donor Month – November

Eye Donation Month is observed every November to raise awareness about the gift of sight that comes from eye donation. The month also encourages people to register as organ, eye, and tissue donors. The Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) established Eye Donation Month in 1983. The theme of the month often aligns with the lyrics of Johnny Nash's 1972 song, “I Can See Clearly Now”.  Click here to read more about this observance and access promotional materials. 

  

Download the Promotional Calendar PDF

   

🎉 Event Ideas for EMS Departments

Bring your department and community together through simple yet meaningful events:

  • Host a Blue & Green Day photo challenge or awareness week

  • Share donor or recipient stories on social media or internal newsletters

  • Create a donor recognition board or memorial space at your station 

  • Partner with a local hospital, school, or DMV for a community registration event 

  • Include donation facts in CPR/First Aid classes 

  

Download the Event Ideas PDF

  

   

Explore other Rescue to Recovery Resources below:

 

Rescue to Recovery is a statewide initiative made possible through grant funding from Donate Life Wisconsin. Developed by the WEMSA Foundation in partnership with Versiti Blood Bank, UW Health Organ Donation Center, Lions Eye Bank of Wisconsin, and the Wisconsin EMS Association.  This program is FREE and available to ANY Wisconsin EMS Department to equip EMS professionals with the tools and knowledge they need to support organ, tissue, and eye donation — both in the field and in their communities.

  

For any questions or feedback regarding the the Rescue to Recovery Program & Resources, please contact us at wemsa@wisconsinems.com.