The Broken Organ Donation System, and How Technology Can Help Fix It

When I first learned that the organ donation system had a technology problem that needed our help, as a technologist, I was intrigued. When I later learned that kidneys, for example, were being transported around the country with no tracking and are frequently lost or damaged en route, I knew this was something our team at Bloom needed to take on. Over the last several months, with support from Schmidt Futures and Arnold Ventures, we led an effort to understand the organ donation system in the United States, and the government contractors who run it. We investigated the technology systems, the processes, the governance, and the history. We untangled, documented and mapped this ecosystem, and we presented our findings in a series of reports, maps, and recommendations.

Our findings point to big and small opportunities to fix and advance the organ donation system using technology, acquisition strategy, and management practices that we consider standard and commonplace in many other industries.

Don’t just take our word for it, here’s what 5 former Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had to say:

“As a patient care issue, an equity issue, and an issue of the best use of taxpayer dollars, policymakers have every reason to get this right. With this thoughtful set of recommendations, there is a clear path forward that will save lives.”

— Former HHS CTOs from the Foreword in our report

And here’s the full text of the Foreword:

The full report entitled, The Costly Effects of an Outdated Organ Donation System offers a comprehensive look at all of the work. We hope you find it as illuminating as our journey to develop it has been.

Pollinator is an open space for sharing lessons learned and insights curated by Bloom Works. Have practical wisdom to share with other changemakers in this space? We’d love to learn more. Drop us a line at — pollinator@bloomworks.digital