Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Organ donors

Some countries have a higher organ donor rate than others. In New Zealand 2 of the major issues seems to be that the next of kin are too emotional to make decisions and medical staff are not always comfortable asking permission.

I wonder whether a special donor tattoo could be developed and hygienically applied to indicate whether a person is an organ donor?

This could certainly increase our donor rates.

2 comments:

Jane Gianoutsos said...

My brother passed away about 12 years ago and although he indicated he was willing to be a donor on his drivers license, the decision very much came down to the family as to whether 'we' would donate his organs and then which of them we would donate. I make a point of sharing my experience with this and the ways that it was positive for me (ie knowing that other children kept their dad and other families still have loved ones because of my brothers gift). Have since had a friend lose a loved one and I believe the awareness of my experience helped her with making a decision in a very emotionally charged time. Awareness is key.

Tony said...

Thanks for your comment. That's a great experience to share & the more people that hear these positive stories, the more organs that will be donated.