Misconceptions Keep Many from Organ Donor Consent

Q:  I've recently read several articles about organ donation and have for years placed the "organ donor" sticker on my diver's license.

However, it occurs to me to wonder if there would be any problem with donating due to my having an autoimmune disease Sjorgen's syndrome. For many years this made little difference in my life until I experienced a sever reaction to an antibiotic requiring prednisone and several courses of chemotherapy. Is there any problem with leaving the "organ donor" sticker on my driver's license?

A:  What a great and thoughtful question. The short answer is that you most definitely should keep the sticker on your license, says Margie Fischer, organ donation coordinator of the Wisconsin Donor Network. There are only two causes for absolute disqualification as a donor: any current cancer other than a primary brain tumor, and being HIV positive. As with any prospective donor, there would need to be a more thorough evaluation at the time of death.

At this time, there are more than 74,000 Americans awaiting organ transplantation, 1,500 of them in Wisconsin. Solid organs currently being transplanted include the heart, lungs, liver, pancreas, kidney and small intestine. Additionally, tissues such as eyes, bone, skin, ligaments and tendons, and blood vessels are used from donors. In 1999, more than 75,000 tissue transplants were done in the US.

Less than 1% of deaths annually present the right circumstances for organ donation, usually the result of brain death from some kind of traumatic injury. Of the 15,000 to 20,000 deaths in this category, only about 5,000 become actual donors, yielding about 20,000 organs available for transplant. Last year in Wisconsin, 151 people were organ donors.

Factors preventing organ donation include:

• A donor card has not been completed.
• Family members decline consent.
• Hospital personnel do not approach the family because they fail to recognize the potential for organ donation or they do not want to cause family members more distress.

Common misconceptions often preclude the completion of a donor card. Many people erroneously believe that a cost to the family will be assessed, than an open casket would not be possible for a donor, that emergency room staff will be less diligent in life-saving efforts, or that organ donation is contrary to widely held religious beliefs.

If after considering this information you elect to complete a donor card, tell your family of your decision and wishes. If you have questions, call the Wisconsin Donor Network at (800) 432-5405.

"Your Health" provides easy-to-understand information about common health conditions.