Re: Is an opt-out system likely to increase organ donation?
I am getting fed up reading the individual, heart-warming stories of how donated organs have saved lives. We all know this. It's amazing. But it's time that the BMA started thinking about this subject in scientific terms, rather than the very shaky ethics they support. Where is the evidence that an opt-out law would have made any difference to Max? Where is the evidence that an opt-out law would make any difference to Erin? What does this add to the debate? They got their transplants under the existing systems, in which most organs come already from people who are not on a register, but have their organs donated by authorisation of their relatives.
The truth is, as highlighted by Sadler and Sadler, an opt-out system is a cruel illusion. At the very best, the media interest and publicity around it will improve donor rates a little bit. At worst, rates will fall as the donor pool is reduced (6% of the Welsh population have now opted out). In reality, most likely there will be no difference at all, and the cost of supervising registers and implementing a new law would be better spent on sustained public awareness and information campaigning, supporting the infrastructure such as retrieval team transport, more ITU beds, more surgeons, anaesthetists, SNODs, along with research into alternatives such as tissue regeneration.
Come on, BMJ, give us actual scientific research, not this 'opinion' debate with little substance. The BMA needs to start behaving as a group of doctors, scientists, and ditch its poorly thought out policy of supporting presumed consent without any evidence of benefit.
Rapid Response:
Re: Is an opt-out system likely to increase organ donation?
I am getting fed up reading the individual, heart-warming stories of how donated organs have saved lives. We all know this. It's amazing. But it's time that the BMA started thinking about this subject in scientific terms, rather than the very shaky ethics they support. Where is the evidence that an opt-out law would have made any difference to Max? Where is the evidence that an opt-out law would make any difference to Erin? What does this add to the debate? They got their transplants under the existing systems, in which most organs come already from people who are not on a register, but have their organs donated by authorisation of their relatives.
The truth is, as highlighted by Sadler and Sadler, an opt-out system is a cruel illusion. At the very best, the media interest and publicity around it will improve donor rates a little bit. At worst, rates will fall as the donor pool is reduced (6% of the Welsh population have now opted out). In reality, most likely there will be no difference at all, and the cost of supervising registers and implementing a new law would be better spent on sustained public awareness and information campaigning, supporting the infrastructure such as retrieval team transport, more ITU beds, more surgeons, anaesthetists, SNODs, along with research into alternatives such as tissue regeneration.
Come on, BMJ, give us actual scientific research, not this 'opinion' debate with little substance. The BMA needs to start behaving as a group of doctors, scientists, and ditch its poorly thought out policy of supporting presumed consent without any evidence of benefit.
Competing interests: No competing interests