{"id":232822,"date":"2025-07-14T13:32:04","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T17:32:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=232822"},"modified":"2025-07-14T13:32:04","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T17:32:04","slug":"uconn-medical-students-learning-to-strike-out-organ-donation-inequities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2025\/07\/uconn-medical-students-learning-to-strike-out-organ-donation-inequities\/","title":{"rendered":"UConn Medical Students Learning to Strike Out Organ Donation Inequities"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Two UConn School of Medicine students Riley Cable and Lila Medeiros of the Class of 2028 are immersed in a unique, new summer training program offered by\u00a0the <a href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/neds.org\/__;!!ADdU39pX!VAWjCm0J2PAbWl9IuzfqW-XnKxEpdfYQJoRmDruUx35VV7SzYpx9GdhTR9AipJnfe1OcsDfeFX7UHl46ajIc$\">New England Donor Services<\/a>\u00a0(NEDS) seeking to educate future doctors to address longstanding inequities in organ donation.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_232830\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-232830\" style=\"width: 488px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-232830 img-responsive lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-1024x768.jpeg\" alt=\"CT State Rep. Murray Riley meeting with students and members of the new program.\" width=\"488\" height=\"366\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-1536x1153.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-2048x1537.jpeg 2048w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-560x420.jpeg 560w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-2processed-1ED96F79-D912-4782-9B76-B88C6252A5BC-003-886x665.jpeg 886w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 488px) 100vw, 488px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 488px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 488\/366;\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-232830\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Medical students of the new Galen V. Henderson, MD Stimulate Equity, Education, and Diversity (SEED) Program with NEDS&#8217; Matt Boger (center). (NEDS Photo Credit)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In the New England region NEDS is the federally designated Organ Procurement Organization responsible for the recovery of organs and tissues for transplant. Its inaugural 8-week summer training program is providing medical students of all backgrounds from across New England with hands-on donation and transplant experience as they learn about potential career paths in organ donation and transplantation.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/neds.org\/henderson-program\/__;!!ADdU39pX!VAWjCm0J2PAbWl9IuzfqW-XnKxEpdfYQJoRmDruUx35VV7SzYpx9GdhTR9AipJnfe1OcsDfeFX7UHhFQr0dj$\">Galen V. Henderson, MD Stimulate\u00a0Equity,\u00a0Education, and\u00a0Diversity\u00a0(SEED) Program\u2019s<\/a> goal is to train the next generation of doctors like Cable and Medeiros from UConn and other medical schools across the region on ways to improve fairness in organ donation and transplantation in health care.\u00a0The new program is named in honor of the late Dr. Galen V. Henderson, who served as an associate medical director for NEDS and the first Black neurointensivist in the United States.<\/p>\n<p>The need for a new training program like this is important as the latest data from a <a href=\"https:\/\/nap.nationalacademies.org\/catalog\/26364\/realizing-the-promise-of-equity-in-the-organ-transplantation-system\">report<\/a> shows:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Donor registration rates among black, Asian, and Hispanic Americans are lower compared to other racial and ethnic groups.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Black patients are less likely than white patients to be preemptively referred for transplant evaluation.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Black, Asian, and Hispanic patients have substantially lower rates of living donor kidney transplantation compared to white patients.<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>Only 4% of transplant surgeons and physicians are Black.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In addition to UConn, medical students from Brown University, Harvard Medical School, Tufts University School of Medicine, and University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine participated in the new summer NEDS training program.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_232828\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-232828\" style=\"width: 473px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-232828 size-full img-responsive lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-Picture2-1.png\" alt=\"The medical students in the new program visiting CT State Rep. Brian W. Murray (NEDS Photo Credit).\" width=\"473\" height=\"305\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-Picture2-1.png 473w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-Picture2-1-300x193.png 300w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 473px) 100vw, 473px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 473px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 473\/305;\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-232828\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>The medical students in the new Galen V. Henderson, MD Stimulate Equity, Education, and Diversity (SEED) Program this summer even had the opportunity to visit local legislators such as CT State Rep. Brian W. Murray (NEDS Photo Credit).<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Cable of UConn\u2019s medical school is interested in possibly pursuing a future career in the surgical specialties.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis program is a great opportunity to get exposure to a surgical field while learning about transplantation,\u201d says Cable. \u201cFrom scrubbing in for organ recovery surgeries to hearing from donor families or meeting physician leaders in the field, it&#8217;s been an awesome\u00a0experience.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>After being immersed in the program this summer Cable of UConn says, \u201cThere&#8217;s so much more to organ donation than having a heart on your driver&#8217;s license. As a future physician it&#8217;s helpful to learn the process of organ donation and transplantation so I can better advocate for my patients. This internship has definitely opened my eyes to transplant surgery as a career choice. We get such a unique view of the field through this program and I\u2019m grateful to have the opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>UConn medical student Medeiros<em>\u00a0<\/em>chose to participate in the new SEED program for the unique opportunity to learn more about the field of transplantation.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_232833\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-232833\" style=\"width: 220px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-232833 size-full img-responsive lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-Picture3.jpg\" alt=\"UConn medical students Riley and Lila Medeiros (left) attending a NEDS community outreach event at the Hartford Yard Goats with Andrew Jones.\" width=\"220\" height=\"308\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-Picture3.jpg 220w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NEDS-Picture3-214x300.jpg 214w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 220px) 100vw, 220px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 220px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 220\/308;\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-232833\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">UConn medical students Riley Cable and Lila Medeiros (left) attending a NEDS community outreach event at the Hartford Yard Goats with Andrew Jones, a Multicultural Community Outreach Coordinator at NEDS. (NEDS Photo Credit)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI had no idea how much of an impact this program would have on my path moving forward,\u201d says Medeiros. \u201cLearning about the history of transplantation and the remarkable progress in the field has been incredibly inspiring. But what has impacted me most are the powerful stories shared by donor families and recipients. Hearing their firsthand experiences, marked by resilience, generosity, and courage, has been the greatest privilege.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Medeiros concludes, \u201cWhile a career in transplant surgery is something I am now strongly considering, I know the insights and perspective I have gained from this program will stay with me no matter which specialty I ultimately pursue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Their exciting summer program ends on July 24.<\/p>\n<p><em>Learn more about the <a href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/neds.org\/henderson-program\/__;!!ADdU39pX!VAWjCm0J2PAbWl9IuzfqW-XnKxEpdfYQJoRmDruUx35VV7SzYpx9GdhTR9AipJnfe1OcsDfeFX7UHhFQr0dj$\">Galen V. Henderson, MD Stimulate\u00a0Equity,\u00a0Education, and\u00a0Diversity\u00a0(SEED) Program.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>New England Donor Services Launches New Medical Student Summer Immersion Program to Advance the Future of Organ Donation and Transplant Equity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":98,"featured_media":232829,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1715,1868,2233],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[1873],"class_list":["post-232822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-impact","category-meds","category-university-news"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-10 08:22:26","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/98"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232822"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232822\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":232841,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232822\/revisions\/232841"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/232829"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232822"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=232822"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=232822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}