Organ donation – opt in or opt out? What do you think?

Do you support an ‘opt in’ or ‘opt out’ policy for organ donation?

That’s the question being put to Shropshire people as part of a research project being carried out by Shropshire Council’s public health team, to find out people’s views about organ and tissue donation.

The online survey runs from today (1 June 2014) to 30 June 2014 and you can take part by clicking here.

The research follows a debate by Shropshire Councillors at a full Council meeting in late 2013 around the current ‘opt in’ policy in England – whereby an individual signs up to register and specify which organs they would like to donate after they die.

Following the debate, Shropshire’s Health and Well-being Board was asked to conduct a piece of research to gather the views of Shropshire residents on the topic of organ donation.

The question the Board is asking Shropshire residents is whether they wish to remain with the current ‘opt in’ policy, or would prefer the ‘opt out’ policy – meaning that everyone is automatically considered to be a potential donor unless they ‘opt out’ of doing so.

The outcome of this research will be published during autumn 2014.

The response to the survey will be taken to full Council for debate.  If the majority response is for the organ donation policy to move to an ‘opt out’ policy, this outcome will be used to lobby central government for a change in policy.

Professor Rod Thomson, Shropshire Council’s director of public health, said:

“An organ transplant may save a person’s life, or significantly improve their health and quality of life.

“The current opt-in policy in England means that people must sign up to the organ and tissue donation register, specifying which organs and/or tissues they are willing to donate after they die.

“We are interested in hearing people’s views on whether they would prefer to remain with the current ‘opt in’ policy, or would prefer it if Shropshire adopted an ‘opt out’ policy.”

Karen Calder, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for health, said:

“We are neither against nor in favour of a change to presumed consent legislation, and we just want to seek the views of Shropshire residents on this important question.

“We welcome any debate that raises the value and importance of transplantation and increases the general public’s knowledge of the importance of organ and tissue donation.

“I look forward to seeing the results of the survey later this year.”

Organ and tissue donation is the gift of an organ (eg heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, pancreas and small bowel) or tissue (eg bone, skin, tendon and corneas – the transparent front part of your eye) when you die to help someone who needs a transplant.  People who need organ transplants go on to transplant lists to wait for a suitable donor to become available.

To find out more about organ donation visit http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Donation/Pages/Ethicsandworries.aspx.

To find out more about the current ‘opt-in’ policy in England see http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/.

To find out more about the ‘opt-out’ policy being introduced in Wales in 2015 see http://organdonationwales.org/?lang=en.

Additional information

There are two options of organ donation policies to be considered:

Opt-in policy

The current policy in England is ‘opt-in’; this means that people must sign up to the organ and tissue donation register, specifying which organs and/or tissues they are willing to donate after they die.

• You can join the organ and tissue donation list regardless of your age or health
• You can choose to donate only specific organs
• Your family can still choose to override your request (and if you are under 18 your parents need to agree to your wishes)
• If you are not signed up to the register, your family can still choose to donate your organs and/or tissues if they believe this is what you would have wished.

Under an Opt-out system or ‘presumed consent’, everyone is automatically considered to be a potential donor,  unless they have specifically ‘opted out’ by recording in writing their unwillingness to give organs.  An example option of an ‘opt-out’ policy would be:

• If you do not wish to donate your organs you would need to register a decision not to be a donor
• If you do not register a decision it will be assumed that you are happy to donate your organs after you die
• You can choose to donate only specific organs
• You can appoint a representative to make a decision about consent on your behalf
• If you lack capacity to understand the policy, a representative will make a decision upon your behalf.
• This is a ‘soft’ opt-out system, as the family can still refuse the donation on the individual’s behalf if they believe that they did not want to be a donor.