California Career and Technical Education Standards

• HSMT.FS.11.0 Demonstration and Application
• HSMT.FS.5.1 Apply appropriate problem-solving strategies and critical thinking skills to wor...
• HSMT.FS.5.3 Use critical thinking skills to make informed decisions and solve problems.
• HSMT.FS.7.3 Understand the need to adapt to varied roles and responsibilities.
• HSMT.FS.7.5 Know how to interact appropriately and respectfully in various employment situat...
• HSMT.FS.8.1 Know major local, district, state, and federal regulatory agencies and entities ...
• HSMT.FS.8.4 Understand the ways in which ethical considerations affect emerging technologies...

California Academic Content Standards (Reinforced)

• ELA.9-10.LS.2.5c Deliver persuasive arguments that clarify and defend positions with precise and ...
• ELA.9-10.LS.2.5d Deliver persuasive arguments that anticipate and address the listener's concerns...
• ELA.9-10.LS.C.1.1 Formulate judgments about the ideas under discussion and support those judgments...
• S.9-12.LS.9.a Students know how the complementary activity of major body systems provides cell...1

• The Helicopter - Hooks / Set

  As students enter the room, have the audio clip of helicopter playing. Write on the board:  Can you identify this sound? " add audio file

  Write responses on white board below question.

  Next show the image of a transport helicopter arriving at the hospital with  the healthcare transplant team meeting them. add image

  107,116 waiting list candidates on 4/23/10 @ 12:00 noon (UNOS website)

  • Helicopter audio file [ Go to Site ] Sound of helicopter to play during anticipatory set.
  • Helicopter [ View Image ] [ Download Original ] Show this image once they share their guesses on the sound they are hearing.
  • Health care team [ View Image ] [ Download Original ] Helicopter crew arriving at hospital
• General information - Lecture

  Donated organs are a severely limited resource the best potential recipients should be identified.  The probability of a good outcome must be highly emphasized to achieve the maximum benefit for all transplants.  Medical professionals, while honoring the moral obligations to extend life and relieve suffering whenever possible, must also recognize the limitations of transplantation in meeting these ends. Transplant centers are encouraged to develop their own guidelines for transplant candidate consideration.  Each potential transplant candidate should be examined individually and any and all guidelines should be applied without any type of ethnicity bias.

  Some criteria to consider:

  • Life expectancy
  • Organ failure caused by behavior
  • Compliance/adherence
  • Repeat transplantation
  • Alternative therapies

  Provide students with web site information or provide printed information.

  • US government transplant information [ Go to Site ] null
  • United Network Organ Sharing [ Go to Site ] null
• Part I individual work - Demo / Modeling

  You are a member of the Transplant Review Board at City General Hospital.  A pair of lungs is on its way to the hospital by helicopter.  Four of your patients have the correct lung size and blood type to receive them.  They have all been waiting the same amount of time for the lungs.  Who will you choose, and what criteria will you use to make this decision?  Be prepared to defend your choice.

  Distribute “You be the Judge” student handout which contains the above information.

  Go through the 4 patients add images of 4 individuals to match written scenarios for each candidate.  These images can be changed for each period this lesson is taught.

  • Student/group handout [ Download ] null
• Selection of Groups Part II - Group Work

  Teacher will form groups of 4. Best place students in groups where not all chose the same recipient.  This will allow for problem solving, critical thinking, as well as the ability to work together on a common goal.

  • Teacher guide for working in small groups [ Download ] null
• Selecting Criteria - problem solving/critical thinking - Other

  General information:

  1. What kind of criteria did each group consider in selecting lung recipients?
  2. How did they decide which criteria were most important?
  3. How do students feel about an age limit for transplant candidates?
  4. How might they differentiate between patients who have knowingly abused their bodies, such as cigarette smokers or alcoholics, and individuals who have not engaged in risky behavior?
  5. How should the ability to pay – through insurance, Medi-Cal, or personal funds—affect which patients are selected?

  Activity Answer:

  Students’ answers should reflect some sort criteria for selecting a recipient.  These criteria might include the overall health of the patient, the patient’s age, the method of payment, or the likelihood that the patient would have a productive life after surgery.  It should be stressed that there is no right answer and everyone’s opinions must be respected.

  • Bioethics issues concerning transplants [ Go to Site ] USC website