Nurse says organ donation helps some heal, knowing their loved one saved a life

NORTH LIBERTY — Madeline Overman became a nurse to help people. She loved working in critical care, but the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 changed everything in nursing and medicine, and she considered other options.

“There were so many sad situations … A lot of death, to be frank,” said Overman, who graduated from Mount Mercy University with a bachelor of science in nursing in 2018 and joined UnityPoint Health — St. Luke’s Hospital, working as a registered nurse in the intensive care unit. “It was really hard. COVID-19 was one of the reasons I left, but I loved working in critical care.”

Overman, 29, of Anamosa, continued working at St. Luke’s until 2024, when a friend who worked at the Iowa Donor Network, encouraged her to join the nonprofit, which serves as the primary contact for organ and tissue donation services for the state.

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She had taken care of donors on the critical care side in the hospital, so was familiar with what the nurses do when helping donors and families prepare for organ recovery.

“I’ve always liked working with and meeting new people,” Overman said. “I enjoy learning new things. You never know everything, even a nurse who’s been working for 20 years doesn’t know everything, and medicine is always changing.”

When she became an organ donation coordinator with the Iowa Donation Network, based in North Liberty, she was able to use her bedside and critical care skills, which is required for the position, in a different way that still allowed her to continue her medical education.

Overman said nurses working in critical care must be able to function somewhat independently and “be the eyes and ears” for the doctors, who aren’t at the bedsides 24/7 like nurses.

“Effective critical thinking is imperative for critical care nurses, and this translates into organ donation coordinators as we are at the bedside independently with remote assistance from our supervisors and medical directors,” Overman said.

What does it take to work for the donor network?

Candidates for this position must be a registered nurse or respiratory therapist and must have at least two years of emergency room or intensive care unit experience, Overman said.

After a family or the organ donor agree to donate and sign the required paperwork, Overman goes on site to meet with them at a hospital, which could be anywhere in the state. She remains there to help the nurses and doctors manage the treatment and donation process.

She also helps conduct the workups on the donor and order the lab work and scans — whatever is required — to make sure the donation is viable and will be a success. Overman also helps set up the operating room and she talks with the attending doctors about the organ recovery process.

All the information is then shared with the transplant centers so they can determine if the organs will work for their recipients. Overman said there’s a protocol that must be followed during the process based on national standards or requirements.

Overman, in her position, doesn’t work with the donation recipients. All the donor information is uploaded to an online database, which generates a waitlist of compatible recipients for the donation entered.

Donation is a ‘selfless gift’

Overman acknowledges that some people may not think of organ donation as something positive when their loved one has died or is dying, but many who make that “selfless gift” find hope in helping another live.

“It’s amazing that families say yes in the throes of grief and are willing to wait for the (organ) recovery,” Overman said. “We just try to help through this tragic time in their lives.”

It is a “sacrifice” for the family of a donor in a situation where they decide to remove life support because they must agree to continue life support until the organ recovery can be completed, Overman said. This may prolong support from two to five days.

If the donor is unstable, the team can offer a quicker process, but not as many organs can be recovered, Overman said.

In the short time Overman has worked for the Iowa Donor Network, there have been many positive stories about families who decided to donate. One example is a donor from Iowa City who was in a fatal car crash last year. His donation of all major organs helped five people.

After the donation, his sister started volunteering for the nonprofit and speaks to people about the process, encouraging them to donate. Overman said that happens often. The organization has many donor family members who have become volunteers.

Besides organ donations, families can also make tissue donations — skin, bone, heart valves, eye cornea — even if the organs aren’t provided, and tissue from one donor can help 200 people, Overman said.

Some people don’t realize that removing tissues from the eyes can leave the eye intact for funeral purposes, as well as removing skin tissue that won’t be visible during a memorial service, Overman pointed out.

In 2024 there were 130 “productive” — meaning successful — organ donors. Not all donations are viable. Overman said some of those also may have donated tissue.

Overman said she thinks the pediatric donor families may make the biggest impact because their child’s life was cut short and through a donation they can feel like a small part of them lives on in another.

“Those are difficult for parents and also hard for nurses because we’ve been at their bedside helping with the donors’ care,” Overman said. “The whole ending doesn’t have to be sad. There are so many stories where parents have been able to hear their child’s heartbeat in another person. That’s so amazing.”

The nonprofit has advocates that work with the families, along with social workers, before and after the donations are made. They can help the donor families and recipients meet and may even plan an activity for them, besides providing other support throughout the process.

Stress of the job

Overman said the job can be emotional and stressful at times, but working in the nursing profession for the last seven years she has learned how to deal with it. She copes with stress by being an avid reader — finishing about 95 books last year. She likes fiction, mostly fantasy, to tune out her everyday life.

She also exercises, walks her dog and she and her husband enjoy camping.

Overman said she doesn’t regret her change from critical care nurse to donor coordinator. COVID-19 impacted nursing and placed more stress and pressure on hospital staffs. Many left the profession and the ones who stayed had to work long hours.

“It’s all kind of a blur to be honest,” she said.

Then, the August 2020 derecho hit. Overman was working the night shift at St. Luke’s. Her drive home to Anamosa, which usually took about 35 minutes, stretched out to 90 minutes because of the devastation from the storm.

“If COVID didn’t happen, I may have been a lifer in the ICU, but I love this job,” Overman said. “I get to help facilitate donations and support families through a difficult time. It’s amazing. They are giving the gift of life.”

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