Carriage House Plans: Organ Donation Facts

Tuesday, 20 November 2012

Organ Donation Facts

You are never too old or too young to donate – for example, an 85 year old donated their kidneys to two recipients and Australia’s youngest donor was a new born baby who died of abnormal brain function and donated a liver to save the life of a one-year-old child. Children aged under 12 who want to register as a donor have to have their registration to donate authorised by a parent or guardian. Organ and tissue donation are medically possible only after brain death, which is in only one per cent of deaths. This occurs in a hospital with the body on a ventilator. There are strict laws governing what brain death means and death has to be certified by two independent doctors. Medical tests clearly show the difference between brain death and a coma. Current legislation is state/territory based, covered by Human Tissue Acts. In essence, they state that a person can choose to be a donor and organ donation can proceed unless the wish is reversed or unless the family does not consent. If the deceased’s wishes are not apparent, consent for organ donation rests with the next of kin. While 96 per cent of Australians are supportive of organ donation, only 54 per cent of people who died of brain death become donors because in 46 per cent of cases, the family refuses to consent. That is why it is as important to tell your family of your wishes as it is to register as a donor