Tell your tribe about organ and tissue donation
“Have the conversation about organ and tissue donation with your loved ones today so that when the time comes, they will be aware of your wishes and be able to save a child’s life one day.”
May 6 to 12 is National Burn Awareness Week and an opportunity to raise awareness about the effect that burn wounds have, especially on children.
Stella de Kock, managing director of Tell (Transplant Education for Living Legacies) which was launched in the Rosebank Killarney Gazette distribution area, explained that because children’s skin was still developing, they have thinner skin which could result in more serious injuries from a burn or scald.
“Their skin also burns at lower temperatures and more deeply, thus making them more susceptible to harsher burns with long-term effects,” said de Kock.
She said that sub-Saharan countries carried an extraordinary burden of burns among children. It is estimated that between 300 000 and 17.5 million children under five sustain burn injuries annually and that fire-related burns were the second-largest external cause of death in the region.
“There is overwhelming evidence that these injuries are largely environmentally conditioned and therefore preventable.”
She offered the following tips to prevent burns and scalds:
- Create a child-safe area at home
- Keep hot objects out of children’s reach
- Check bath water temperature
- Watch children around fireplaces
- Don’t hold your child while working in the kitchen.
De Kock said in South Africa burns were the third most common cause of accidental death among children under 14, exceeded only by motor vehicle accidents and drowning.
“Nearly 230 children die from burns in South Africa every year. These deaths occur due to the severity of burns but more so because there are no effective, affordable synthetic treatment options available to patients.”
There are 23 burns units in the country, two of the leading ones include the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital (NMCH) in Parktown and the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital (CHBAH) in Diepkloof.
De Kock added that every year NMCH treated about 3 500 children for burns, about 1 300 of which were severe burns. She said 98% of children treated for burns were from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Skin grafts were the gold standard for treating burn wounds to minimise scarring and promote healing. By applying donor skin through an allograft, the body recognised the skin as human tissue and sees it as the patient’s own and accepts it. An allograft also relieved pain and controlled infection more effectively than a collagen dressing. The skin allograft could be harvested from the torso, hips, thighs and upper calves of the deceased donor.
“Have the conversation about organ and tissue donation with your loved ones today so that when the time comes, they will be aware of your wishes and be able to save a child’s life one day.”
For more information, visit www.tell.org.za or follow Tell on social media @tellorgza
Related articles:
https://rosebankkillarneygazette.co.za/264211/organ-donation-consent-rates-go-up/
https://rosebankkillarneygazette.co.za/368832/living-kidney-donors-are-life-saving/
https://rosebankkillarneygazette.co.za/364207/become-a-bone-marrow-donor/
