Best of Silver Anvil Highlights: Couch Potatoes Can Save Lives Too

PRSAMore than 120,000 people are on waiting lists for a life-saving organ transplant and hundreds of thousands more can benefit from the transplant of other tissues such as corneas and bone. But only 45 percent of Americans have taken the step to sign up as a donor in their states’ donor registries. Research showed that the top reason people did not sign up was the mistaken belief that age, health or lifestyle ruled them out as a suitable donor.This is not the case; anyone can sign up to be a donor. The Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank set out to correct this perception and increase donor registrations. Data provided by the Wyoming Organ and Tissue Donor Registry showed that 99 percent of donors in the registry signed up via a driver’s license application or renewal, so the first objective was to get the Wyoming Department of Transportation to grant permission to place a campaign in all driver’s license offices in the state. WYDOT not only came on-board, but also agreed to share data about results. Changing perception was one thing. Increasing participation was another. The Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank relied on research showing that people are more likely to participate in an activity if they believe others are participating as well. Two of 10 print PSAs tested by focus groups of non-donors were selected for banners and countertop signs in driver’s license offices. “Couch Potatoes” depicted two potatoes on a couch with the message that no one is too unhealthy to sign up to be a donor. Focus group participants felt it addressed their concerns in a humorous but sensitive way. A second PSA, “Will You?” depicted a show-of-hands image illustrating the percentage of people who sign up to be a donor. Three offices in Wyoming were chosen to test the “Will You?” PSA two months after the “Couch Potatoes” PSA was in place. The state’s percentage of donors rose above 60 percent for the first time after the “Couch Potatoes” campaign premiered. A z-test for proportions showed a 95 percent confidence level that the campaign was the motivating factor in the increase. The three offices using the “Will You” PSA saw the largest increases in the percentage of drivers signing up as donors, with and average three percentage point gain. Of TV, radio and print media placements in key areas of the state, 100 percent included the key messages.  For more information, click here: https://bit.ly/2018anvils.