Slowther, Anne. (2009) Organ donation. Clinical Ethics, Vol.4 (No.2). pp. 64-66. ISSN 1477-7509

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Abstract

The use of organs or tissue from one person to save the life or significantly improve the health of another person has been a subject of debate among ethicists, lawyers, clinicians and the wider public for many years. Within this journal alone, in its four-year history there have been several papers discussing the issue. 1 – 3 The undoubted need for organ donation is highlighted by the number of people actively waiting for a transplant in the UK (7868) and the disparity with the number of transplants carried out (3151 in the year 2008/9). 4 The most recent focus has been on the question of presumed consent for cadaveric transplantation and the recommendation of the Organ Donation Taskforce that ‘an opt out system should not be introduced into the UK at the present time’. 5 In its report, the Task Force acknowledged the complex and multidimensional nature of organ donation. This complexity arises partly because of the range of methods by which organ donation can occur and the sources of organs for transplantation. These include the following: † Living donors related to the recipient of the organ; † Non-related living donors; † Paired or pooled donation where the potential donor and recipient are not tissue-compatible and therefore paired with another donor and recipient to enable both recipients to receive a suitable organ; † Heart-beating cadaveric organ donation (where brain death has occurred in the donor); † Non-heart-beating cadaveric organ donation where brain-stem death has not occurred but treatment is withdrawn from the donor on the grounds of futility. The idea of an ethics group to advise health-care professionals on ethical issues that might arise in relation to organ donation and transplantation on a ‘day-to-day basis’ has been suggested by Farrell. 1 Currently, such ethics advice might be sought from a clinical ethics committee. In this Five-Minute Focus, we will explore some of the underlying ethical principles and perspectives that inform both the ongoing debate and current practice in relation to organ donation.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BJ Ethics R Medicine > R Medicine (General)
Divisions:	Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Health Sciences Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Institute of Clinical Education (ICE) Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Donation of organs, tissues, etc., Medical ethics
Journal or Publication Title:	Clinical Ethics
Publisher:	Royal Society of Medicine Press Ltd.
ISSN:	1477-7509
Date:	June 2009
Volume:	Vol.4
Number:	No.2
Page Range:	pp. 64-66
Identification Number:	10.1258/ce.2009.009011
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/37324

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