Using TNet vs. Using Postal Mail

There are two different ways to contact your donor family: through TNet (our online system) and through regular mail.

Please note that you will not be able to use TNet if your transplant program does not have a TNet account. Click here for a list of participating transplant programs — we plan for this list to expand gradually. If your transplant program is not on the list, please encourage them to join TNet!

TNet was created to streamline safe donor family to transplant recipient correspondence and make the process more convenient and clear for all those involved — recipients, donor families, and coordinators. Below we summarize the benefits of using TNet in contrast to regular mail.

  • Letters cannot be lost during the review and forwarding process
  • Length of letter review and handling is shortened significantly
  • Users receive immediate updates on the status of their letters in the forwarding process, giving them peace of mind
  • Guidelines and suggestions for writing letters are available on the portal as transplant recipients and donor families compose their letters
  • TNet is easier for OPOs and transplant programs to handle, as they can approve or send back letters with the click of a button and forward letters directly through the system
  • If needed, users can get their questions answered quickly through TNet support

The basics of the TNet and traditional correspondence processes are the same. First, you write your letter intended for your donor family. Then, your transplant program verifies your identity and reviews your letter for appropriateness. If no changes are indicated, your transplant program forwards your letter onto the organ procurement organization (OPO) that worked with your donor family. The OPO then reviews your letter once more and checks in with your donor family to ensure that they are willing and ready to receive recipient letters. Finally, if there are no concerns about your letter, the OPO sends it to your donor family.

The key differences between communicating with your donor family through TNet and through the traditional hard-copy mail process are the medium, waiting time, and automation.

  • Medium: Letters sent via TNet are written and forwarded electronically on our user portal. Participating transplant programs and OPOs review and direct letters on their TNet accounts. Intended recipients will receive letters for them in an email from TransplantNet; if they do not have a known email address, the final reviewers will print and mail the letters to them. Meanwhile, the traditional correspondence method involves hard-copy letters and U.S. postal mail.
  • Automation: Upon registration, you indicate your transplant program, so our system automatically forwards the letters you write to the TNet inbox of your transplant program. The coordinator from your transplant program can review and then pass on or send back your letter (with an explanatory note) straight from his or her account. At each review step that your letter undergoes, you receive automatic status update emails from our system so that you know how close your letter is to reaching your donor family. In U.S. postal mail correspondence, your letter will be manually addressed and forwarded at each step.
  • Time: The TNet system delivers electronic letters almost instantaneously as they are directed to different people throughout the process, eliminating the mail time that hard-copy correspondence requires.