Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue

“Gift of hope organ & tissue donor network management reviewed the 990. An additional detailed review was conducted by the organization's treasurer, management and a representative from the organization's audit and tax firm. The audit committee of the board of directors reviewed and approved the 990. The 990 was distributed to all board members prior to filing.”

“On an annual basis, gift of hope organ & tissue donor network requests written confirmation of any conflicts from all officers, directors and key employees. On a continual basis, management monitors and reviews any changes to the disclosures which may create a conflict of interest. Any disclosed conflicts are reviewed by management and the governance and nominating committee.”

“Gift of hope organ & tissue donor network engages an outside compensation consulting firm to conduct a biennial market analysis of salaries paid to its senior level employees, which include the president/ceo, coo, cfo/cao, vice presidents, medical director, and lab director. The consulting firm presents its market research and analysis to members of the board of directors' executive committee. Executive compensation decisions are made and approved by persons on the committee who are free of any conflict of interest, are directors of the corporation and who satisfy the criteria of independence. After reviewing the data, the executive committee approves the amount of the chief executive officer's salary increase and/or bonus for the year based on performance and market data presented by the consultant. The compensation for other senior level employees is decided by the president/ceo.”

“Documents are made available to the public upon request for the same period of disclosure as set forth in irc section 6104(d).”

“The articles of incorporation are publicly available from the illinois secretary of state's office. Gift of hope organ & tissue donor network reviews any request for release of the conflict of interest statement, financial statements or governing documents. The final decision for releasing the document(s) to the public is the responsibility of the president/ceo.”

“Program service accomplishments the centers for medicare and medicaid services (cms) hospital conditions of participation requires hospitals to report all deaths and imminent deaths to their region's federally designated non-profit organ procurement organization (opo). As the opo responsible for the recovery and transplantation of donated organs and tissues in the northern three-quarters of illinois and northwest indiana, gift of hope organ & tissue donor network works with 180 hospitals and hundreds of partner agencies and advocates to serve over 12 million people in our donation service area. Since beginning operations in 1987, our work with illinois and northwest indiana organ/tissue donors and their families has saved the lives of more than 31,000 organ transplant recipients. Together, we have improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of tissue transplant recipients. Our full-service histocompatibility laboratory provides the histocompatibility testing required to match donor organs with transplant candidates. Our responsibilities include evaluating potential donors for medical suitability, discussing donation with family members of potential donors, coordinating the process, providing support and follow-up to donor families, educating healthcare and allied professionals about their roles, working with hospitals on their policies and procedures related to donation, and educating the public about donation and how to register their legal decisions to become organ and tissue donors. Through our work, we are one of the few donation service areas in the nation to achieve more than 500 organ donors in a single year, and more than 33,500 organs donated since inception. Federal designation gift of hope organ & tissue donor network is federally designated by cms under the u.s. Department of health and human services as the not-for-profit opo serving the northern three-quarters of illinois and northwest indiana. Accreditations and certifications gift of hope organ & tissue donor network is: - accredited by the american association of tissue banks, the american society for histocompatibility & immunogenetics, and the college of american pathologists - certified in histocompatibility, syphilis serology, general immunology testing, routine chemistry, and hematology through the clinical laboratory improvement amendments program, division of laboratory services, centers for medicare & medicaid services, u.s. Department of health and human services - registered with the u.s. Food and drug administration as a human cells, tissues, and cellular and tissue-based products establishment - an approved provider of continuing education for transplant coordinators by the american board for transplant certification, continuing certification committee - an approved provider of continuing education for funeral directors by the illinois department of financial and professional regulation; and - a member in good standing of the united network for organ sharing, the association of organ procurement organizations and the american association of tissue banks. Donor resource center gift of hope's 24/7 donor resource center and its specially trained staff fielded over 71,000 calls in 2024. This included over 42,000 calls from the 180 hospitals in our service area as well as county coroners, nursing agencies and other agencies referring patient deaths and imminent deaths for evaluation for potential organ and tissue donation. Our coordinators manage communication before and throughout donation cases among hospital personnel and the entire gift of hope team including administrators, family support specialists and organ and tissue recovery coordinators. This ultimately led to our work in 2024 with 758 families confirming authorization for organ or organ/tissue donation, and an additional 1,704 families confirming authorization for tissue donation. As a result, 1,495 lifesaving organs were provided for transplant, and thousands of lives will be enhanced throu”

“The extraordinary medical advance that is organ transplantation saves lives every day. Advances in transplantation make it a viable lifesaving option for more and more people as the waiting list continues to grow. Donors make transplantation and the gift of hope possible for the hundreds of thousands in need. Heart donors save the lives of those with heart disease, congenital and hypertensive cardiomyopathy; donated lungs save patients with copd, emphysema and cystic fibrosis. Patients with chronic hepatitis, liver tumors and cirrhosis await liver donors; patients with type 1 diabetes need pancreas transplants. Intestine transplants benefit those with short bowel syndrome. The vast majority of those in need of organ transplants are patients with hypertension, diabetes, polycystic kidney disease and other conditions in need of a kidney donor to save their lives. Donated heart valves, saphenous veins, and femoral veins help patients resolve cardiovascular problems. Donated bone and soft tissues make possible a multitude of surgeries and can prevent the need for amputations and painful grafting procedures. Through gift of hope's work with donors and families in illinois and northwest indiana, our region is known as a major provider for donations of lifesaving skin for burn victims locally, around the country, and for the military. Professional education and training ensuring that every opportunity for donation is identified and effective requires gift of hope's ongoing, committed work with physicians, nurses, pastoral care personnel, funeral directors, coroners and many others who play key roles in referring potential donors and facilitating donor care. In 2024, gift of hope's professional education and training staff provided more than 700 educational programs for over 9,000 healthcare professionals, forensic professionals and social workers. The education and training team works closely with hospital development, partner relations, and all departments to develop and deliver effective education programs and webinars, including continuing education programs.”

“Public education accomplishments gift of hope accomplishes these goals by: - conducting frequent and comprehensive public education programs throughout the year - providing information on organ and tissue donation to community, civic and school organizations through public displays and presentations - disseminating electronic, print and online communications that give hospital staff, funeral directors, coroners, volunteers and others current information - utilizing traditional media that provides interviews to local and national television, radio, print and online media on issues of interest in organ and tissue donation and transplantation - executing a social media plan designed to gain new supporters and ambassadors, increase registrations in the donor registry, and create and sustain a positive "buzz" about donation among social network followers - conducting volunteer training sessions on an ongoing basis in support of gift of hope's mission; and - performing community outreach throughout designated coverage areas by educating hispanic and african american communities, and the community at large on how to become registered organ and tissue donors. Community outreach engages all stakeholders; organizational partners, community and faith-based organizations, educational institutions, the business community and influencers into conversations and meaningful interactions about the lifesaving decision to become organ and tissue donors. Gift of hope supplements these activities with outreach and communications tied to several donation-related special events held throughout the year, including: - national donor day (feb 14) - national donate life month (april) - national minority donor awareness month (august) - hispanic heritage month (sept 15 - oct 15) - hope and faith month/national donor sabbath (november); and ongoing remembrance and celebration of donor families at special events and programs in the community and with hospitals and professional partners including funeral homes through our donation service area.”

“Change in equity investment in affiliate 1,595,700. Change in post-retirement benefit obligation 83,584.”