Medicine is ever-advancing; still there are many incurable illnesses such as organ failure. When organ damage is so serious as to make common modes of treatment ineffective, transplantation is the only way out for these patients.
Every day, there are more than 2,000 patients in Hong Kong having an imminent need for organ or tissue transplant. Without the matched organs, these patients can do nothing but to struggle with sickness and in darkness, with their lives heavily dependent on apparatus and medicines. Some of them may not hang on for long.
A donated organ is a love bequeathed to other people. To help the patients with imminent need for organ transplant, you may indicate your wish to donate your organs after death. Your family should be able to understand and support your will of kindness. Only you and your family’s support can kindle the hope of life for these patients.
What is organ donation?
Organ donation is the greatest gift to patients and their family. Body organs no longer have a functional use for a person who passes away. Yet these organs may become an irreplaceable source of life for those who are desperately waiting for organ transplant.
There is no restriction as gender, age or race for organ donation. In general, when a prospective donor passes away, medical and nursing personnel will make an assessment of each case to verify the deceased’s will and feasibility of organ donation.
Organs suitable for transplantation include kidney, liver, heart, lung, cornea, bone and skin. Organs are removed surgically in an operating theatre and the wound will be properly stitched. Doctors and nurses will pay full respect to the donor’s body and observe every detail to maintain its physical appearance.
Some common misconceptions about organ donation
X = Misconception O= Fact
X: Once I have signed the organ donation card, I will not be taken care of if I have an accident. O: This will never happen. Saving lives is the responsibility and foremost priority of every medical personnel. Only after a patient is certified dead will the suitability of organ donation be considered to bring new life to another patient with organ failure.
X: The transplant of an organ from one body to another may not be acceptable according to my religious belief. O: Most religions encourage sharing and giving. In fact, religions such as Buddhism, Taoism, Catholicism and Christianity all support the spirit of organ donation as an act of benevolence and merit.
X: I am worried that the organ recipient or his/her family will cause more grief to my family by sending their thanks or condolences upon learning the donor's name and address. O: The privacy of the donor and the recipient will always be respected. Neither the name nor personal particulars of the donor will be disclosed, but the family of the donor will be informed of the recipient's progress after the transplant.
X: I have a history of medical illness and my organs or tissues may not be suitable for donation. O: There are a few absolute contraindications for organ/tissue donations. For example, patients with some infectious disease or cancer (except brain cancer that has not spread) may not be suitable for organ donation. The medical team in charge of the transplant will assess all potential donors individually for suitability of the organs/tissues for donation.
X: My age is not suitable for organ donation. O: There is no absolute age limit for organ donation. In general, organs may be donated from someone as young as a newborn or those whose age is below 75. As for certain types of tissue donation, the age limit is below 80 for cornea and between 16 and 60 for long bones. There is no age limit for donation of skin.
X: I am worried that all my organs will be taken away even if I only want to donate one of them. O: You may specify in the Centralised Organ Donation Register or on the donation card which organ/tissue you wish to donate. In addition, a consent form has to be signed by your family to specify the organ/tissue to be removed for transplant purpose.
X: I am worried that the removal of an organ will affect the appearance of my body and the look in the funeral. O: Once the consent form has been signed by the deceased’s family, donated organs will be removed surgically as soon as possible, with full respect to the deceased's body. Donation will not disfigure the body or change the way it looks as the surgical wound will be properly cared for and will usually be under the cover of clothing.
X: I am worried about the fees and charges arising from organ donation. O: The donor family does not need to pay for charges arising from organ donation after the donor's death.
X: I am still young and do not have to think about organ donation. O: At present, suitable organ donors are mostly patients who died suddenly in accidents or from acute illnesses. If the wish of these patients to donate organ(s) after death has not been put down in writing or made known to family members beforehand, it will be difficult for their wish to be realised after death. Thus, it is never too young to consider organ donation.
X: As organ transplants are still experimental, I am worried that the donated organs will be wasted. O: Organ transplants are not experimental. In fact, organ transplantation is widely recognised as an effective way of treating organ failure. A transplanted organ offers a patient with end-stage organ failure a chance to start a new life and improves the quality of life. The success rates of organ transplants are high. For example, the survival rate of patients receiving kidney transplants after one year is about 90%.
How to support organ donation?
Anyone who wishes to donate organ(s) after death should inform his/her family or friends about this wish, and have the wish recorded in writing.
Centralised Organ Donation Register
The Department of Health (DH) has set up the Centralised Organ Donation Register (CODR) to make it more convenient for prospective donors to voluntarily register their wish to donate organs after death, and for such wish to be more reliably recorded. The Register will enable medical personnel responsible for organ donation to know upon the patients’ death about their wish to donate organs, and the bereaved family to acknowledge the deceased’s wish to rekindle lives of other people.
