What is a Donor Mentor for Living Kidney Donation?
If you’re considering becoming a living kidney donor, you probably have questions like What is the kidney donation process like? How will kidney donation affect my life? and What can I expect before, during, and after kidney donation?
While your medical team will provide critical medical guidance, it can also be valuable to talk to someone who has already donated—a real person who’s been through the process and can speak from experience. That’s where the National Kidney Registry’s Donor Connect program comes in.
Door Connect is a free, optional program offered to anyone who registers to become a donor through the NKR. When you register to donate through a patient’s microsite or the NKR’s online screening system, you’ll have the option of being connected with a donor mentor.
A donor mentor is a living kidney donor who educates, supports, and advocates for donor candidates. A mentor will routinely check in and guide you through the process from registration to recovery. If you opt in to the Donor Connect program, you will be assigned a donor mentor, and they will reach out to you directly.
A donor mentor can:
- Answer your questions about living kidney donation
- Educate you on how to achieve the best possible outcomes for both the donor and recipient
- Provide information on donation options such as the Standard Voucher and Family Voucher Programs
- Educate donor candidates on the matching process
- Discuss the support and protections available to donors through the NKR’s Donor Shield
- Share their personal donation story
- Provide practical insights based on their own experience
- Help you navigate the steps of the donation journey
Donor mentors do not provide medical advice, but they can help potential donors feel more prepared, confident, and supported throughout the donation process.
What Can a Donor Mentor Help With?
Donor mentors can talk through many aspects of the process, including:
- Your motivation and concerns about becoming a donor
- How to talk to family and friends about your decision
- What testing and evaluations you’ll need to complete
- What donor surgery is really like from the perspective of someone who’s been through it
- Any emotions or reactions you may be experiencing
- Tips for recovery and life after donation
- Resources and support available to living donors
As one living donor shared, “The hospital explains things in a technical manner, but my mentor was a real person who made me feel understood and at ease.”
If you’re thinking about donating a kidney, you don’t have to do it alone. While you may have the support of family and friends, a donor mentor gives you a chance to learn from someone who’s lived through the experience.
Donor mentors will not try to convince you to become a living donor. They have only one goal: to support you throughout the process and ensure you have all the information you need to make the right decision for you.