Lack of trust and transparency an obstacle in organ donation

Despite Tamil Nadu earning appreciation for organ donation every year, a recent study revealed that only three per cent of the people have registered with an authority to donate organs. The study conducted by Mohan Foundation and a private insurance company revealed that only 35 per cent of people in the State understand the process of donating organs.

In Chennai, while 70 per cent of the study group were aware of organ donation, 59 per cent of them considered it important. However, there were only 34 per cent of participants who understood the process of donating organs and only 35 per cent of them were willing to donate the organs.

The nationwide data is even poor with only 24 per cent of Indians willing to donate organs due to a low understanding of the process, while only three per cent of the participants have registered with a relevant authority to donate organs.

The nation-wide study shows that 80 per cent of the 1 565 respondents who participated are aware of the concept of organ donation, 67 per cent believe it to be important, but only 35 percent understand the process of how to donate their organs. In this context, Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance in association with Mohan Foundation, an NGO working in the field of organ donation, will observe November as Organ Donation Awareness Month.

Several barriers like low trust and lack of transparency also came to the fore. Sources with the foundation said that the transparency and trust in authorities for organ donation is reducing, especially in the State as more than 45 per cent of the respondents said that organ donation is a scam, fearing that hospitals might procure more organs than pledged. Barring eyes, kidney, heart, and liver, most people are also unaware of what organs and tissues can be donated. Over 25 per cent also believe that organs can also be donated when in a coma.

While the option to donate organs in a comatose state does exist, an individual in a coma is not automatically considered eligible for donation, as there are chances of reversal or recovery and as this does not qualify as cardiac or brain death. Fear of denigration of the body and worries over having no option to back out once registered also affected people’s decision-making process.

About 45 per cent of respondents believe that their family would not allow them to pledge their organs, while about 40 per cent of the respondents were worried that if they agreed to donate their organs, the process might become a hassle for the family.