Gift of Hope - Organ & Tissue Donor Network

The dynamic and evolving field of organ and tissue procurement offers exciting employment opportunities for those who seek to make a difference.

Serving one of the nation’s largest and busiest donation service areas, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network is growing! We currently seek talented candidates to join our team in the following positions:

Senior Public Education Coordinator
Itasca, IL office, Full-Time (Exempt)

Donation Specialist
Itasca, IL office, Full-Time (Non-Exempt)

HR Generalist
Itasca, IL office, Full-Time (Non-Exempt)

Senior Writer and Communications Specialist
Itasca, IL office, Full-Time (Exempt)

Family Support Services Coordinator
Itasca, IL office, Full-time (Non-Exempt)

Our employees enjoy competitive salaries, a team environment and business-casual workplace attire. Qualified full-time staff receive full medical, dental, vision and life insurance benefits, as well as pension and tuition reimbursement benefits and a generous time-off plan.

All of our employees work in support of our critical mission: to save and enhance the lives of as many people as possible through organ and tissue donation.

All candidates must demonstrate excellent verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills; be detail-oriented; possess the ability to handle multiple projects; and possess the ability to work independently. Basic computer skills are a must. Travel by personal auto and the ability to work outside normal business hours may be required.

For consideration, you must meet all the minimum requirements. No phone calls, please. To apply, mail, e-mail or fax a cover letter, resume and any required supporting materials to:

Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network
Attn: Marion Shuck, Human Resources
425 Spring Lake Drive
Itasca, IL 60143
E-mail: mshuck@giftofhope.org
Fax: (630) 758-2666

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Responsibilities: The Organ Recovery Coordinator rotates 24 hour on-call responsibilities with team members as assigned to respond to organ referrals throughout Gift of Hope's service area. The position coordinates the evaluation, informed consent, medical management, surgical recovery, allocation and distribution of organs for transplantation from deceased organ donors in accordance with applicable policies, procedures and protocols. The Coordinator communicates effectively and compassionately with families of potential donors to present the option of organ and tissue donation. The Coordinator also identifies and communicates essential clinical information (verbally and via written documentation as required) with associated departments, transplant center staff, Gift of Hope Medical Director/Managing physicians and administrators as required by policy and procedure. Achieving and maintaining competency in clinical and technical skills required to facilitate organ and tissue donation and transplantation is required. The position participates in departmental quality assurance initiatives, works collaboratively with other departments and designated agencies to facilitate the recovery of tissues for transplantation or research and assists associated departments in professional and public education related to organ and tissue donation.

Qualifications: The ideal candidate will be a Registered Nurse with at least two years of critical care experience and currently working in a critical care setting; or Paramedic or Allied Healthcare Clinicians (Respiratory Therapy, Perfusionist) with at least three years of experience and currently working in a critical care setting; or Clinical/Transplant/Recipient Coordinator with 1 or more years of experience.

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Responsibilities: The Senior Public Education Coordinator will plan develop, market and coordinate outreach campaigns, successfully develop new opportunities and work with workplaces, key colleges, universities, associations and partner organizations to provide education and ensure organ/tissue donor registrations. In this position, the candidate must inspire and maintain positive relationships and ongoing communications on behalf of Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network and Donate Life Illinois with all partners and allied agencies. The position plans, coordinates and supports all aspects of special events or programs related to areas of responsibility, and help coordinate other departmental and organizational events and programs. Inspire and manage ongoing, positive relationships with key community, educational, religious, civic and social organizations to increase awareness and commitment to organ and tissue donation and transplantation, as aligned with organizational and department goals are also key responsibilities.

The Coordinator plans, develops, produces and promotes internal and external communications in a variety of styles for prospective and existing workplace and college/university partners, allied agencies and targeted public audiences by identifying needs, writing, proofreading and coordinating production of Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network’s and Donate Life Illinois’ press releases, speeches, publications, websites, and additional educational materials. The position collaborates on development of ads, logos, marketing and other collateral materials; monitors and analyzes the effectiveness of communications and materials; enhances, updates and maintains the organization’s social networking sites. The Coordinator develops and maintains relevant databases and tracking tools. And also monitors and analyzes effectiveness of all efforts based on established goals and program measures to propose enhancements.

The Coordinator serves as spokesperson on behalf of Gift of Hope to professionally and positively influence understanding of donation/transplantation with external groups, including media as assigned. Planning, writing, developing and conducting presentations for community, educational, religious, civic and social organizations to increase awareness and commitment to organ and tissue donation and transplantation are also responsibilities of the position. Additional responsibilities are assigned by the Manager as needed.

Qualifications: The candidate will have a Bachelor's degree in Public Relations, Marketing, Journalism, Communications or related field and at least five years experience in public relations and communication. Experience in communications planning/implementation and layout/design is required. The candidate must possess impeccable writing, proofreading, editing and critical thinking skills; have a meticulous attention to detail and highly developed sense of responsibility and follow-through; and possess the ability to think, and act independently, and appropriately to represent Gift of Hope and Donate Life Illinois. Creativity, self motivation, strong organizational skills are needed attributes. The candidate must possess the ability to speak publicly before a wide variety of audiences to motivate and inspire others and have a sense of humor.

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Responsibilities: Responsibilities for this position are divided into two categories:

Organ Responsibilities: The position is responsible for creating an environment that allows for each potential organ donor family to make an informed decision about organ and tissue donation, provides families with accurate and relevant information that allows them to make an informed decision regarding organ and tissue donation and cultivates relationships with staff that facilitate cooperation and collaboration when determining the best time, place, and manner to speak with families. Responsibilities include fostering hospital relationships within assigned region, assuming on-call responsibility as determined by Regional Manager, conducting accurate, effective on-site evaluations of potential organ donors and coordinating Patient Care Conferences with appropriate hospital staff during critical points in the referral and/or consent process. The position also assesses medical status and determines organ donor potential per Gift of Hope’s criteria in conjunction with the Administrator on clinical findings that are questionable or as a clinical resource when needed.

Hospital Development Responsibilities: The position functions as an expert resource within the hospital on all aspects of organ and tissue donation. In conjunction with hospital administration, the Donation Specialist participates with the regional team in the creation and implementation of effective policies and procedures to improve organ and tissue donation, develops and implements strategic plans (long-term goals) to identify hospital strengths and weaknesses and optimize hospital performance and proactively focuses on and reviews data after collection, analyzing, and updating information regarding performance outcomes with regional team members. This position participates in quality assurance audit activities related to donation within the region, reports collective data to hospital administration and appropriate hospital department managers, and establishes effective working relationships with hospital administrators, physicians, nurses and other allied healthcare professionals. By taking the necessary actions to promote the hospital's adoption of donation as part of its mission, the Specialist fosters professional relationships with hospital departments to support all Gift of Hope efforts through developing, providing and evaluating educational programs with the regional team on all aspects of the donation process for hospital staff.

Qualifications: The ideal candidate will have a Bachelor’s Degree in an Allied Healthcare field, Business Administration, or related field; or equivalent work experience.

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Responsibilities: This position is responsible for effectively managing employee benefits programs including insurance broker and TPA relationship management. The position manages the leave of absence process by assuring that leave requests are handled according to existing policy and that supporting documents are complete and timely. The HR Generalist oversees the processing of injury/incident reports and Worker's Compensation claims and represents Human Resources on the Safety Committee. In this position, the HR Generalist counsels employees/managers on routine employee relation issues consistent with the organization's human resources policies and manages employee recognition programs and employee events. The position coordinates and monitors employee performance evaluation process for accuracy, timeliness and policy compliance. Conducting exit interviews, analyzing data and making recommendations based on the analysis are also responsibilities of the HR Generalists, as well as, other duties as assigned.

Qualifications: Ideal candidates will have a Bachelor's Degree in Human Resources or other related field, three years human resources experience in benefits, LOA administration, worker's compensation and some compensation experience. The candidate will have knowledge of federal and state employment law, and regulatory compliance. Proficient use of Microsoft Office applications, such as Word, Excel, and Outlook; and HRIS systems such as ABRA is required. The candidate will also have the ability to effectively resolve problems or issues by using judgment that is consistent with policies, procedures, regulations and past practice.

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Responsibilities: In this position you will be responsible for providing communications of specific constituent interest to the Illinois Hospital Association, Illinois Nurses Association, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the Illinois Funeral Directors Association and other key promotional healthcare organizations. In this role, the employee needs to develop and maintain relationships with transplant center marketing/media contacts and healthcare trade media to place articles that position Gift of Hope and its staff, promote support of organ/tissue donation and educate key professional audiences about their roles in the process. The employee will assist the Manager in the development and coordination of overall program content and materials, coordinate marketing/promotion and logistics, and coordinate responsibilities as necessary among Hospital Development, Tissue Donor Services, Public Relations/Donor Family Services and other Gift of Hope staff.

Additional responsibilities are organizing and maintaining overall content for Gift of Hope website; creating materials for public education and outreach; planning, researching, writing and developing professional education, marketing and strategic communications materials; and orchestrating internal and external communications for publications and marketing initiatives. It is also important for the employee to ensure consistency, accuracy and audience-specific appeal of communications including print collateral, articles, newsletters, web content and presentations.

Qualifications: The ideal candidate will possess excellent writing, proofreading, editing and project management skills and a meticulous attention to detail. The candidate must have a bachelor’s degree in journalism, public relations, marketing or related communications field and 5 years of writing experience, preferably in health care. Other important personal attributes for the position are creativity, self-starter qualities and strong interpersonal skills.

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Responsibilities: This position is responsible for ensuring that potential donor families make an informed decision regarding organ, tissue, and research donation. Evaluates and facilitates each family's understanding of brain death; provides emotional support for potential donor families, as well as, follow-up care. Performs early on-site evaluations of potential donors; assists with donor family services projects. Position responsibilities can be broken down into two distinct categories: Organ/Tissue and Professional Education.

The Family Support Services Coordinator creates the environment that allows for each potential organ and tissue donor family to make an informed decision about organ and tissue donation based on accurate and relevant information. Empathetic listening skills and problem-solving techniques to effectively anticipate and respond to each family’s objections or concerns with the donation process is required. The Coordinator cultivates relationships with staff that facilitate cooperation and collaboration when determining the best time, place and manner to speak to families and communicates with hospital liaisons to improve working relationships at donor hospitals. The Coordinator actively participates in de-briefing meetings in order to sharpen skills and assist other in their professional growth. This position assumes 24-hour on-call responsibility as determined.

This position conducts accurate, effective early-on-site evaluations of potential organ donors, reviews hospital charts and current records of potential donors and assesses medical status and determines organ and tissue donor potential per Gift of Hope criteria in conjunction with the Administrator on Call and/or the Gift of Hope Medical Director. The Coordinator documents finding and follow-up plans in hospital charts and communicates same to hospital staff while on site, as well as communicates pertinent information with Medical Director, (when necessary) Donor Resource Center, Administrator on-call, and the hospital liaison.

Professional education responsibilities for the Family Support Services Coordinator includes assisting in hospital designated requester training programs, provides public and professional education program regarding the requesting process and in new employees’ orientation. The Coordinator actively seeks and participates in speaking engagements for both the general public and professionals in conjunction with the public relations department, training facilitator, and hospital development staff, as well as participles in ongoing education with organ recovery staff.

Qualifications: Ideal candidates will possess a Bachelor’s degree in Allied Healthcare related fields, or equivalent work experience in Crisis Intervention, Familial situations. The candidate must have the ability to take rotating 24-hour call, work outside of normal business hours and work every other weekend. A preferred candidate will have exceptional communication, listening, observational, analytical and critical thinking skills. The ability to work in a hospital and oftentimes stressful environment on a daily basis is also required. Bilingual (Spanish or Polish), a plus.