ORGAN TRANSPLANT

Organ Transplant

Organ Transplant

Introduction

Organ and tissue transplantation has become a common lifesaving and life-enhancing procedure with excellent results. The improved success rate of transplants due to advances in technology and immunosuppression as well as the trend of a population that is living longer have contributed to a substantial increase in the number of patients awaiting transplantation . In the United States, the number of individuals waiting for an organ transplant far surpasses the number of donor organs recovered each year. As of October 2003, there were over 82,000 patients on the National Organ Transplant Waiting List (Cherry, 2005). Transplantable tissues are also in demand to improve the quality of many patients' lives.

A solution to the high demand and critical shortage is to increase the number of organs and tissues recovered from donors. Both cadaveric and living donor transplants are currently performed in the United States. According to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN), there were 25,451 organ transplants performed in the United States in 2003, of which 18,648 were from cadaveric donors and 6803 were from living donors . It is noteworthy to mention that since 2001, the number of living donors has exceeded the number of deceased donors each year . However, since one cadaveric donor often provides multiple organs and tissues, cadaveric donation remains the major source of organs and tissues available for transplantation (Gruessner, Enrico, 2008). While the scope of the present study was limited to aspects of cadaveric organ and tissue donation, the findings have implications for living donation as well.

With respect to cadaveric donation, researchers have reported that only 40% of all potential organ donors and 24% of potential tissue donors actually become active donors .

Methodology

This study is conducting by using focus group discussion technique. These statistics reveal inefficiency in the organ and tissue procurement process. Unfortunately, a major factor limiting the number of organ and tissue donors is the low rate of consent by families of potential donors. Siminoff et al. found that more than 50% of families refused to grant consent for donation. While a survey of the general public suggests that nine out of 10 Americans support the concept of organ donation, many remain reluctant to donate their own organs or those of a deceased family member . Numerous factors have been found to be associated with families' decisions to grant consent for donation including positive beliefs and attitudes toward organ donation and prior knowledge of the patient's wishes regarding donation, either through a signed donor card or prior discussion about donation with the patient . Family sociodemographics and discussion with the family of topics such as the costs of donation, impact of donation on funeral arrangements, and the option for the family to choose which organs to donate also were found to be directly related to the donation decision (Munson, Ronald, 2002). Therefore, it appears that knowledge and attitudes regarding organ and tissue donation play a significant role in the decision to ...