This type of assessment is intended to assess at your mental, physical, and emotional health. It can include how you think about yourself (self-perception) and how you manage or live in your community.
All potential donors will meet with the social worker. They’ll talk to you to make sure that you:
- have a full understanding of the living kidney donation process
- have all the information you need to make an informed decision
- know all the possible risks
- have all the help and resources you need to finish the evaluation process and recover from surgery
The social worker can support you and your family through the changes that can happen with a living kidney donation. One social worker supports the donor, and a different social worker supports the recipient. For example, there may be a change in roles in your household as the donor recovers from their surgery. You may want to talk to your social worker about how you feel about this.
All anonymous (non-directed) donors will be asked to meet with a psychologist or psychiatrist (or both) for an evaluation. This is done to help make sure the potential donor’s decision to be a living donor is right for them.
The social worker or the doctor may also recommend a directed donor talk to a psychologist or psychiatrist as well.
You can also ask for this type of appointment if you feel that you’d like:
- to talk about your decision
- some psychological help
Deciding to become a living kidney donor, going through the testing, and thinking about surgery can be very stressful. Sometimes it helps to talk to someone.
