Paying Tribute to Organ Donors: The Honor Walk
The halls of a hospital can be a hectic environment – except when an Honor Walk is taking place. For a few sacred moments, the normal hustle and bustle comes to an abrupt stop. Family, friends and healthcare workers line the halls in silence as a patient who is an organ donor is transferred from the intensive care unit to the operating room for organ recovery.
It is an excruciating walk for the patient’s family. They accompany their loved one in grief yet they are surrounded by the love and care of all those who line the hallway in support.
“When an honor walk is called, caregivers are given the opportunity to show up in person to let the family of our donors know they are not alone,” said Memorial Health’s Julie Jones. “As a chaplain who has walked the path from the ICU to the operating room, the support of the staff gathered in the hallways can be physically felt. It is holy. Even though no words are exchanged, we all know that life will be offered to another who is on the cusp of losing their own. And we get to be witnesses together.”
Organ donation is an extraordinary gift – the sharing of lifesaving organs that provide hope to others. But it comes with great heartache for the patient’s family because it means their loved one has reached the end of life.
Rob Withers knew the general idea behind Honor Walks, but never did he think he would walk in one until his younger brother Richard, 40, of Petersburg, was wheeled to the operating room on a Sunday in February.
“As we started our walk down those halls that day, it was so heartwarming to see not only friends and family there lining the halls for my brother but also so many staff members from the hospital as well,” he said.
For healthcare workers, the Honor Walk is a gesture of deep respect for the patient whose decision to donate organs will allow others to live. The walk allows a brief break from clinical duties – that may have involved the patient – to provide emotional support for the family and friends of the patient.
For the family, the extra support means the world.
“As much as I wish that no one has to lose a family member or friend, the Honor Walk is such a beautiful, honorable send off for that person and the family,” Rob Withers said.
Springfield Memorial Hospital’s first Honor Walk took place April 20, 2019. Since then, more than 80 Honor Walks have taken place.
April is Donate Life Month. Want to learn more about organ donation? Check out the additional resources below.
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