Health chief wants Wales to talk about death - WalesOnline

Health chief wants Wales to talk about death - WalesOnline


Health chief wants Wales to talk about death
Jul 14 2008 by Dr Tony Jewell, Western Mail

With so many people desperate for help, now’s the time to talk about organ donation, says Dr Tony Jewell

LAST week was National Transplant Week, when a concerted effort was made to make the public aware of the urgent need for organ donors.

The target for the week was to register an additional 80,000 people as organ donors across the UK.

But to sign up donors for just one week of the year isn’t enough – it is something that we should be advocating 365 days a year.

There are 480 people waiting for transplants in Wales alone at the moment, many of them children.

More than 90% of people support organ donation in principle, but only 25% of the population in Wales have actually acted on their good intentions and made the commitment.

The demand for organ donation is ever increasing as people are living longer and scientific breakthroughs are made, which in turn mean the scope for use of donated organs has developed too.

As the NHS continues in its efforts to provide better care, and more opportunities for patients to keep healthy, every effort should also be made by people to sign up as organ donors, and discuss their wishes with their loved ones – something which isn’t necessarily being done at the moment.