New York Islanders Rick DePietro, Arron Asham and Tom Poti have been enjoying successful seasons on the ice. Off the ice, they also are making contributions. On Wednesday, Dec. 13, the three Islanders visited Winthrop-University Hospital's Hagedorn Pediatric Impatient Center to spread holiday cheer.

On Oct. 19, Winthrop-University Hospital was honored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for its high rate of organ and tissue donations. Barbara Kohart-Kleine, vice president for Administration, and Elizabeth Wirkowski, MD, director of the Neurosciences Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Winthrop, attended the meeting of the Second National Learning Congress on Organ Donation and Transplantation where they received the Organ Donor Network Medal of Honor on behalf of the hospital.

"Organ donations are extremely important, as they have the capacity to save lives and improve the quality of life for many suffering people," said Dr. Wirkowski.

According to the New York Organ Donor Network, a single organ donor can save up to eight lives; one tissue donor can save or improve the quality of life for up to 50 people. More than 92,000 men, women and children are waiting for organs for transplantation in the United States; more than 8,000 of them are in New York State. Thousands more need tissue donation for transplantation, such as corneas, heart valves, skin and bone.

The Organ Donor Network Medal of Honor recognizes hospitals that achieve a 75 percent donation rate from eligible patients. The national average donation rate in all hospitals in the U.S. was 59 percent in 2005.

"As we celebrate these outstanding accomplishments, let us remember that behind each number is a human face: an individual who has made a gift of life by becoming an organ donor, and the people who have benefited from a life-giving, life-enhancing transplant," said Kenneth Moritsugu, M.D., M.P.H., Acting U.S. Surgeon General.

For more information about organ and tissue donation, call the New York Organ Donor Network at 800-GIFT-4-NY. For more information about Winthrop-University Hospital, please call 1-866-WINTHROP.