Organ Donors In High Need Locally, Phoenixville Hospital Says

PHOENIXVILLE, PA — The last thing someone who is terminally ill may think to talk about is what will happen to their organs after they die.

But that's exactly the difficult conversation that healthcare professionals at Phoenixville Hospital and Pottstown Hospital are urging patients and community members to have. With waiting lists around the country only getting longer, donating organs has never been important.

But many simply don't think about it, are unaware of the importance, or believe they may be ineligible to donate. This isn't the case.

"It's important to know that anyone can be a potential organ donor regardless of medical history, age, or race," Lynn Shoap, ICU Critical Manager, Pottstown Hospital told Patch.

Shoap said that the waiting lists for various kidney, liver, heart, and lung transplants across America have more than 95,000 patients.

"Every day more people are added to the list," Shoap added. "By becoming an organ donor, you can give the most special gift, the gift of life, to those in need."

Recently, both Phoenixville and Pottstown hospitals held a special flag-raising ceremony as part of the 2025 Hospital and Health System Association of Pennsylvania (HAP) Donate Life Challenge. A live organ donor was part of the Phoenixville event. Donor families and donor recipients were part of the Pottstown flag raising.

"Organ donation is so important because 17 people in the US die each day while waiting for a donor," RN Aileen Bojko, the Critical Care Director at Phoenixville Hospital, told Patch. "I encourage everyone to consider becoming an organ donor and talk to their loved ones about their wish to do so. Being an organ donor is a selfless act that provides those in need and their families the priceless gift of life.”

Health officials said that some 5,000 of the people on the waiting list live in the Philadelphia area.

Kidneys are the organ of greatest need. Issues like hypertension and diabetes often disproportionately impact minority communities, and they represent more than half of those on the waiting list, the hospital said.

To learn more about organ donation and to donate, see here. For information on the National Marrow Donor Program (formerly Be the Match), see here.