Do you think people should have to go out of their way to sign a donor organ card **OR** do you think it should be Presumed Consent where you can Opt OUT. This is in terms of if your organs are donated when you die.
I am going to be interviewed by a University Student on this topic (since I had a Kidney Transplant a few months ago) but am curious what the general public think on this issue.
Thanks for replying. Also you can email me your answers if you want to go into more detail or ask more questions at angieskidney *at* gmail *dot* com.
Thank you.
- Angie Watch this video: http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=M9s9qjsE94... Hi Angie,
As many have already displayed this is a divided ethical debate. I have had lengthy conversations about this very issue before, during and since my role as an organ-transplant recovery nurse. I wish it were as simple as opting in or opting out for everyone.
In my experience, most people are not "legally" informed (this is the term used to describe a truly informed consent, one which includes the actual procedure, reconstruction methods, potential effect on viewing the deceased after donation and embalming, use of organs [transplant, whether tissues can be used for cosmetic procedures, and if non-transplantable organs may be used for research if originally recovered for transplant, or if they can be removed solely for research], any testing required [Hepatitis B & C, HIV, Syphillis, Epstein Barr Virus, etc.], next of kin may be notified by a M.D. if donor is found positive for any of these since in a spousal situation it could prevent further exposure (this applies in cases especially when a spouse had had an affair or used IV drugs in the past and sometimes unfortunately this may be when the husband or wife finds out), also consent covers ability for organ recovery agency to obtain medical records from any previous treating physicians as well as Medical Examiners in the case of an autopsy, the consent also covers any testing needed to evaluate the suitability of organs for transplant, though there is absolutely no cost to the family for any of these procedures.
Unfortunately most people do not sign or give a legal consent prior to death, so the family who is grieving is faced with this abundance of information. By law as the Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) you cannot obtain a yes or no without providing this information, due to the fact that people may not be aware of the particulars and this is the day and age of lawsuits and attorneys. All in all this is there for a good reason, but it burdens the grief-stricken family to the point where sometimes they say no to donation (because of information overload or grief overload) and later regret it.
If this was information given to the person while alive and they opted for or against donation by way of a legal document [while alive] families would be relieved of this burden. To presume however that everyone would want to be a donor for the good of another being is not accurate or responsible. For example, as soon as you take the individual's choice away and have a presumed or implied consent (this term varies from state to state), people feel as though something is being taken away and naturally there is a mistrust toward the process. Unfortunately not so long ago we saw in the media how greedy people can become when it comes to human tissues which were donated for the good of helping others. (There was a scandal of a dentist who was recovering tissues for research and transplant and he had forged consents and health histories to make money...one of MANY reasons I believe there should never be a profit margin in any of this).
If you require a consent to recover organs and people don't make the decision it will always fall into the family's lap, and this is why discussion about donation is encouraged in every family by all family members. For example, I once spoke to a mother of a 14 year old who didn't want to be a donor, HOWEVER she and her daughter had recently had the discussion and her daughter said she would like to help others through organ donation if she could. Unfortunately mom lost her daughter to a car accident and she wanted to make sure her daughter's wishes were carried out. She went on and eventually met the donor family and was able to listen to her daughter's heart beating in another human being. She is now a registered donor.
Also, there have been cases when a person chooses to donate their organs, dies, and after the family sees the consent on the driver's license, they still choose to revoke the decedent's consent. This seems unfair, but some people are very disturbed by donation and dead people do not sue, but families can. Other reasons I have seen families do this is that they do not want the funeral to be held up by one day (usually this is the case; recovery can normally be finished within 24 hours). I have also witnessed a wife consent to all donation out of spite because her husband was with his mistress when he died (this is terrible I know, but it really did happen).
Another example is one that will always disturb me. A child had died and mom wanted to donate (the brain dead son was 16), the dad who had not been in his son's life for many years said absolutely no-way would any organs be recovered. We had to step away and not recover the organs since there was known conflict, even though the son had stated on his license he wanted to be a donor.
Another one was a star high school football player died and the mom and brother consented to tissue donation, the father could not be reached due to being on business out of the country. Upon his return he was angry due to the high cost of his sister's prior liver transplant, so he insisted the already recovered tissues (bones, skin, corneas, and blood vessels) be returned to him. They were returned to him in a cooler (this is how they are preserved while in transport prior to processing and transplantation; you may have seen this on TV before). So then he went through the tissue and said how barbaric this process was because of the sterilly surgical recovered and wrapped bone. It was a mess, it happened in San Antonio, TX in 2003. I think this should have never happened. However, it shows how grief can cause an irrational reaction.
There are many opinions in the matter, and no one can enjoy pondering organs being removed from their own body, but I think of all the kids and young adults who have been able to live a long life because of someone's gift. What a precious miracle. Feel free to contact me if you have further questions, I will answer them to the best of my ability or direct you to someone who can.
Educate yourself, make a decision and tell your entire family. That is the best way to prevent emotional turmoil related to organ and tissue donation. Good luck in your journey. Presumed consent in fact does NOT allow for the person to "OPT OUT". It presumes that unless you have made a conscious decision and said "NO", your organs will, in fact, be donated. Informed consent, as suggested by Frank Klees, MPP Oak Ridges (not sure if that's in fact what he calls it), encourages people to be aware of organ donation and consciously make a decision to tick yes or no on their driver's licenses.
This has been a debate for a while and was recently tabled in the legislature (heaven only knows why). As a recent kidney receipient, I would never want to learn that the kidney I received was taken by assumed consent because someone Didn't mark a box. Consent for allowing removal of body organs must be a pro-active conscious choice on behalf on the donor and not a willy nilly guess as to the patient's wishes. The patients wishes must be clear. It is so important that people understand and believe that the system of organ retrieval has clear guidelines, does not take short cuts and honors the deceased true wishes.
tbrese I think that people should have to opt out. It would help to shorten the transplant waiting list. It's not like people still can't make the decision to NOT donate their organs. It would just be presumed that they want to, unless they say otherwise. With the transplant waiting list being up to 5-7 years in some places, this would really help that out. It would help the US gov too bc dialysis is a LOT more expensive (yearly) than a transplant. It only makes sense to do whatever you can to make the waiting list shorter and get as many people as possible OFF of dialysis. It's a shame that this didn't go through because it has to be the most politically and morally safe idea the government had to date, to help save the lives of millions of people suffering from some form of organ failure. Because lets face it, there is just not enough people signing their donor cards and mostly due to mislead fears. I can understand not wanting to donate a kidney or a lung while your still alive but once a person has passed on, what do they still need their organs for? And if people wont sign their donor cards, how else are sick mothers and fathers, sons and daughters suppose to regain their lives? I think that I would even take it a step further. Everone is a donar at age 21 unless they sign a special card to change it.
I was talking to one of the main organizations yesterday and they had heard about this before . The big thing is to get the government to make changes. |
