This global education program helps educate young children about organs and the power of donation, first developed in the UK by Roydon Turner and All Good Co.
The Orgamites is a global education program that introduces the subject of organ donation to children in an age-appropriate way. Its animated characters — a team of lifesaving organs — help children and their families learn about and appreciate the roles of organs, as well as learn what organ donation is all about. They also introduce the concepts of kindness and caring for ourselves, our communities, and the planet.
Awareness events and campaigns help shine a light on those in need, and honour those who have generously donated to save lives. But saving lives now and for generations to come also requires education, starting at an early age. Parents, teachers and healthcare practitioners can all play a role.
Canadian Blood Services OTDT program has partnered with All Good Co to bring the Orgamites to Canada. The Orgamites made their Canadian debut in Fall 2021 and are finding their way into classrooms, homes and transplant centres across the country.
Three sets of resources were developed to fuel discussion in each of the three areas:
To make organ donation the everyday norm. Instead of organ donation being an unspoken, heavy topic to broach amongst families, we aim to facilitate a societal shift in the way people of all ages view organ donation. By empowering more parents, teachers and healthcare professionals to have more conversations with more children, we envisage a society in which organ donation is the accepted norm, thereby increasing the amount of organs donated and increasing the number of subsequent lives saved.
Through the use of creativity, educational tools, resources, videos, toys and tech, we equip grown-ups to talk about organ donation with children in an appropriate and empowering way. Our resources cover bigger and broader themes too, because it’s our conviction that organ donation fits into a larger category and mindset, one in which people take better care of their health, each other, and their world through acts of kindness.
If you would like to be a part of the Orgamites in Canada, contact us to collaborate at otdt@blood.ca