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Joseph Paparo

In 2026, I am answering the call to... help our hospitals adapt to the ever-changing DCD landscape.
Job Title: Senior Hospital Services Coordinator
Organization: Gift of Life Donor Program
Age: 32
Years in Donation and Transplantation: 10
What makes your career in organ donation and transplantation special?

What makes my career in organ donation and transplantation special is that I am able to have an impact on a patient’s opportunity to receive a life-saving transplant—but not only that. If my work is done correctly, we can offer so many families going through one of the worst times in their lives the incredible opportunity to change the trajectory of their grief journey and allow their loved one to become a donor.
We know that organ donation is such an important part of the end-of-life care continuum, and I want to be a part of making sure that as many families as possible are given that gift. Something else that always stands out to me is that Gift of Life is always on the forefront of donation innovation. In the role of hospital development, it is important to me to go out into our hospitals and help their teams join us for the ride—to help them adapt to new ideas and programs that ultimately expand what is possible for donors and recipients.
Being able to combine that direct human impact with the chance to advance how donation works across an entire health system is what makes this career so meaningful to me.

Biography

Joseph Paparo serves as the Senior Hospital Services Coordinator at Gift of Life Donor Program in Philadelphia, where June will mark his 10-year anniversary. Previously an in-house tissue and kidney donation coordinator, Joe is now the Hospital Services Coordinator for the Temple University Health System.

Alongside his hospital partners, Joe has helped develop a successful donation program and culture within the Temple Health System that has resulted in the coordination of more than 200 organ donation cases and over 500 transplanted gifts over the past four years. He and his Temple partners have also made significant strides in the North Philadelphia community, developing an organ donation council sub-committee—the first joint OPO and hospital committee of its kind in Philadelphia—to promote community engagement and education. Joe plays a vital role in onboarding and training new staff, has shared his expertise at numerous NATCO forums, and took home Top Abstract at the 2021 NATCO Conference.

He was nominated for The Alliance 40 Under 40 by Jacqueline Giuffrida, Director of Hospital Services at Gift of Life Donor Program. “His decade of service reflects a steadfast commitment to the mission of donation and the lasting impact it has on donors, recipients, and the communities they serve,” Giuffrida wrote, noting Joe’s deep expertise across tissue and organ donation and his dedication to mentoring the next generation of professionals.