Summary of Torch Of Life Act
Torch of Life Alert has been the result of almost 2 decades of work addressing the organ shortage by George Marcello.
During the years 1997 to 2010, George’s boots on the ground approachenabled him to talk to millions of everyday peoplehealth officials from Canada, USA & Europe. From these experiences he gathered a public pulse on organ donations.
He shared these views & provided reports to Heath Agencies, Special committees, the 3 levels of Government, media & the public. From his dozens of concrete recommendations some were accepted, some ignored & some still being looked at
In 1999 he inspired Premier Harris to allocate millions of dollars to address the organ shortage in his 2nd Throne Speech. This was one of many other achievements that earned him to become a qualified advocate for this issue. The most successful activities were when George would organize a public appeal for a specific individual who was in need a transplant. By these standards the response was usually overwhelming and a positive result for the individual & their family. Based on these conclusions, George was convinced that the Torch of Life Alert will have a huge impact on saving many more lives, for people not only in need of organ & tissues, but other serious medical condition as well.
George chose the Amber Alert to mirror this new act because of the many similarities. His experiences led him to believe that public would sense the same urgency when children are involved and would respond accordingly. Therefore it has the same importance in making this a law. In Amber Alert the law directs the Law Enforcements agencies to provide the option of a public appeal for abducted children. With theTorch Of Life Act, it directs the hospital staffto provide an option of a public appeal for children in desperate medical conditions
This act it is a plan of action & George’s strongly recommends that the Premier appoint a Provincial Coordinator to organize a team and report directly to the Health Ministry. An official Provincial Website would be built to house the children and this information would be shared with volunteers to facilitate the public appealThis act is an act of action & urgency and needs to be fastracked. Again similar to Amber;
For the purposes of legalities and accuracy, George further recommends that only through a Doctor Referralcan a child be legally placed on the website and with consent from the parent(s)
Eligible children will be chosen at the discretion of the hospitals. Children that would benefit from a public appeal
The present guidelines of organ & tissue donations & other medical conditions would be followed
Organ & Tissue donations will rise and adults will benefit as well