Identification of potential donors.

A. Each hospital in New Mexico, with the concurrence of its medical staff, shall develop by July 1, 2000 a protocol for identifying potential donors. The protocol shall be developed in collaboration with a procurement organization. The protocol shall provide that at or near the time of a patient's death and prior to the removal of life support, the hospital shall contact a procurement organization to determine the suitability of the patient as a donor. The person designated by the hospital to contact the procurement organization shall have the following information available prior to making the contact: (1) the patient's identifier number; (2) the patient's age; (3) the cause of death; and (4) any past medical history available. B. The procurement organization shall determine the suitability for donation. If the procurement organization determines that donation is not appropriate based on established medical criteria, that determination shall be noted by hospital personnel on the patient's record and no further action is necessary. C. If the procurement organization determines that the patient is a suitable candidate for donation, the procurement organization shall initiate donor proceedings by making a reasonable search for a document of gift or other information identifying the patient as a donor or as a person who has refused to make an anatomical gift. D. The hospital must have and implement written protocols that: (1) incorporate an agreement with a procurement organization under which the hospital must notify, in a timely manner, the procurement organization or a third party designated by the procurement organization of patients whose deaths are imminent and prior to the removal of life support from a patient who has died in the hospital; (2) ensure that the retrieval, processing, preservation, storage and distribution of tissues and eyes does not interfere with vascular organ procurement; (3) ensure that the family of each potential donor is informed of its options to donate organs, tissues or eyes or to decline to donate. The person designated by the hospital to initiate the request to the family must be a procurement organization employee or a designated requester; (4) encourage discretion and sensitivity with respect to the circumstances, views and beliefs of the families of potential donors; and (5) ensure that the hospital works cooperatively with the procurement organization in educating hospital staff on donation issues, reviewing death records to improve identification of potential donors and maintaining potential donors while necessary testing and placement of anatomical gifts take place. E. Every hospital in the state shall establish a committee to develop and implement its organ and tissue donation policy and procedure to assist its staff in identifying and evaluating terminal patients who may be suitable organ or tissue donors. The committee shall include members of the administrative, medical and nursing staffs and shall appoint a member to act as a liaison between the hospital and the state procurement organization.