While most people are looking for a love match on Tinder (or at least a hook-up), a new partnership with the United Kingdom’s National Health Service has users swiping right for a different sort of match. In one of the more interesting use cases of the app to date, the NHS is creating special profiles that will prompt matches to sign up as organ donors, sending them a link to the NHS Organ Donor Registry. Considering Tinder’s current reputation as STD central, it’s certainly curious that the NHS would choose to use this particular platform as a catalyst for organ donation.
With support from Jamie Laing (from the TV show Made in Chelsea), Olympic Gold Medalist Jade Jones, and Gemma Oaten (part of the Emmerdale cast), the initiative takes each of these famous British faces and superimposes the logo for ‘The Wait’ atop their Tinder profiles. So when you swipe right on one of these hotties, you’re really supporting the NHS’s organ donation campaign. The organization hopes to target 18-to-35 year olds, who are not only a crucial demographic for the NHS, but also happen to be some of Tinder’s most active users.
When you swipe right on one of these curated profiles, you’ll receive a message reading, “If only it was that easy for those in need of a life-saving organ to find a match.” From there, users will be prompted with a “Yes I donate” message, and can then click on the provided link. With organ waiting lists growing longer by the day, campaigns like this one increase the likelihood of patients receiving an appropriate match.
“Educating and encouraging people to sign up for organ donation — that’s what our partnership with Tinder is all about,” said Sally Johnson, Director of Organ Donation and Transplantation at NHS Blood and Transplant in a press release. Noting that signing up as an organ donor takes about the same amount of time as reviewing a couple Tinder profiles, Johnson continued, “With the help of these bespoke profiles on Tinder, we’ll grab people’s attention and throw a spotlight on the importance of organ donation … The best part is knowing that you could save or improve up to nine individuals’ lives in the future.”
Hermione Way, Tinder’s Head of European Communications, also expressed her excitement over the new partnership. “We’re delighted to have teamed up with NHS Blood and Transplant to help save lives,” she said, “… we hope that the NHS profiles featuring Jamie, Jade, and Gemma will encourage people to make and act upon a different decision too — to sign up as an organ donor.”
