National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week
From April 20 to 26, 2025, join in Héma-Québec’s initiatives and help spread the word about organ and tissue donation!
Asking questions about tissue donation, it can change lives.
For this year’s National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week (NOTDAW), Héma-Québec is mobilizing to raise awareness in Québec about the importance of consenting to donate human tissue and organs. During NOTDAW (April 20 to 26, 2025), Héma-Québec will spotlight human tissue donation, which is often less well known than organ donation, and highlight its direct impact on recipients’ lives.
Goals
This NOTDAW, Héma-Québec wishes to actively encourage organ and human tissue donation and get Quebecers to talk about it. By centring how these conversations make a difference, we are aiming to grow collective awareness of human tissue donation and inspire real action.
The goal of NOTDAW is to:
- Raise awareness in Québec about the importance of consenting to donate organs and human tissue
- Encourage Quebecers to sign the sticker on the back of their health insurance card and talk about it with their loved ones
- Break the taboos revolving around human tissue donation
- Promote human tissue donation
- Start conversations about human tissue donation with families of potential donors
Special webinar for healthcare professionals
We are delighted to be hosting a special webinar for healthcare professionals about conversations with families: “Parler du don de tissus humains, ça change des vies”. The purpose of this webinar is to reiterate the importance of having healthcare professionals systematically refer potential human tissue donors as well as to rethink conversations with the bereaved family. The invited speakers are Sabrina Robichaud (Head of the human tissue donation program at Héma-Québec), Jessica Lajoie (Human tissue donation coordinator at Héma-Québec) as well as Wendy Sherry (Nurse Clinician for Organ & Tissue Donation at MUHC). Sign up now and you’ll be emailed a link for the webinar.
Awareness-raising activities
Our team of human tissue donation and development coordinators will run department tours and other activities in their respective institutions to raise awareness among health professionals about referring potential human tissue donors.
Where?
- CIUSSS de la Mauricie-et-du-Centre-du-Québec
- CIUSSS de l'Estrie-CHUS
- CHU de Québec
- MUHC
- CISSS de Chaudière-Appalaches
- CIUSSS de l'Est-de-l'Île-de-Montréal
- CISSS de Lanaudière
Information and awareness booths will be set up and distribute green ribbons and stickers in schools (CEGEPs and universities).
Information and awareness booths will be set up and distribute green ribbons and stickers in certain Héma-Québec Donation Centres across Quebec.
Héma-Québec will hold an information and awareness table, with distribution of green ribbons and stickers, on April 24th from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm in the main hall of the Parliament Building.
Toolkit
We’ve put together a toolkit to give you all the tools you need to promote the National Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Week leading up to and during the week (April 20 to 26, 2025).
Please note that the toolkit is available only in French. However, the resources are available in both English and in French.