Talk to your family about your organ donation decision

22/09/2021

Organ donation has been added to the National Curriculum so family members of any age  are being encouraged to discuss the subject

This week is Organ Donation Week and we’re being encouraged to talk to our families about organ donation so they are certain about our decision.

The call comes from Oxford University Hospitals and NHS Blood and Transplant.

Around 350,000 people in Oxfordshire are already on the NHS Organ Donor Register, but the concern is whether they have told their family so the family support the decision if they are approached about organ donation by a specialist nurse in hospital.

The law around organ donation changed in England in May 2020, and all adults are now considered as having agreed to donate their own organs when they die, unless they record a decision not to donate, they are in one of the excluded groups, or they have told their family that they don’t want to donate.

Relatives will always be consulted before organ donation goes ahead.

Each year, opportunities for transplants are missed because families aren’t sure what to do.

This year, organ donation has also been added to the National Curriculum for the first time, so family members, whatever their age, are being encouraged to get together to talk about their own organ donation decisions.

Professor Peter Friend, Director of the Oxford Transplant Centre at OUH, said: “Knowing what your relative wanted helps families support their decision around organ donation at what is often a difficult time.

“We need more people in Oxfordshire to talk with their loved ones about organ donation to give them the certainty they need to support their organ donation decision.”


Published: by Banbury FM Newsteam

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