MedStar and NKF Team for Living Kidney Donation Workshop, Oct. 20

LUTHERVILLE, Md. –MedStar Georgetown Transplant Institute and the National Kidney Foundation Serving Maryland and Delaware (NKFMDDE) have partnered to educate and raise awareness about living kidney donation and transplantation.

The two organizations will co-host The Big Ask: The Big Give on Sunday, Oct. 20, from noon to 5 p.m., at MedStar Franklin Square Crawford Conference Center (9000 Franklin Square Dr., Baltimore, MD 21237).

This event comprises two free 2-hour workshops to help waitlisted kidney patients find a living donor. The goal is to educate kidney patients, families and friends on the following:

• Understanding the process from evaluation through transplant
• The living donation process
  • How to make the Big Ask
  • How to tell your story and find potential donors

Overall, the list of people awaiting kidney transplants is growing. There are now 120,000 Americans on the kidney transplant waiting list: up from 19,095 in 1989. Currently, there are 2,712 Marylanders waiting for a life-saving kidney transplant and 9,300 who are on dialysis.

“For people with kidney disease, asking someone to consider donating a kidney can seem impossible. Many won’t get a transplant because they don’t know how to ask or are uncomfortable with asking,” said Pattie Dash, executive director of the National Kidney Foundation Serving Maryland and Delaware. “We are giving the tools to start a life-saving conversation.”

Admission to The Big Ask: The Big Give is free with complimentary parking and lunch. Registration is required by visiting http://bit.ly/BABG1020. For more information, call 410.494.8545 or email pattie.dash@kidney.org.

About MedStar Georgetown Transplant Institute
With more than 55 years, 5,500 kidney and pancreas transplants performed and eight locations throughout D.C., MD and VA, MedStar Georgetown Transplant Institute is the most established and busiest living donor transplant center in the Washington, D.C., area. It’s a leader in paired kidney exchange and the management of recipients and donors who are incompatible, and are the only Donor Shield Center providing a range of donor protections not found at other local hospitals. For more information, visit www.MedStarHealth.org.

About NKF
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is the largest, most comprehensive and longstanding organization dedicated to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease. For more information, visit www.kidney.org.