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When Tinder meets organ donation

Kait BolongaroDecember 21, 2015

British health authorities have teamed up with the dating app Tinder to raise awareness about the lack of organ donors in the country. Have they struck marketing gold?

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NHS Tinder Kampagne
Image: picture-alliance/empics

The British Department of Health's innovative campaign with Tinder has reached the halfway point. Launched on December 14, the initiative aims to encourage young people to join the country's organ donor registry.

Currently, nearly 7,000 people are waiting for an organ transplant in the UK. More than 6,000 patients have died while on the list over the past decade.

The dating app has created artificial profiles for three British celebrities in the hopes of piquing their targets' interest.

Actress Gemma Oaten of the soap opera 'Emmerdale' tweeted the poster of her new Tinder account.

She also proudly displayed her support for National Health Services (NHS).

Jamie Laing, star of the reality show 'Made in Chelsea', shared a snap of his profile picture.

For the UK's National Health Services (NHS), the amount of social media attention the campaign has garnered is a success.

"It attracted a significant amount of positive media coverage and social media engagement which drew attention to the need for organ donors," a spokesperson for NHS Blood and Transplant told DW.

While it may be too early to measure the project's impact, the initiative has definitely gained traction on social media.