1. Why should I consider donating my organs and tissue?

For people with serious or life-threatening illnesses, organ or tissue transplantation could mean a second chance at life. Donation is free of charge and anonymous. Improved survival rates now mean that most organ or tissue recipients enjoy many years of high-quality life after their transplant. Some people see donation as a great gift to others. Some see it as a sensible, practical thing to do after death.

2. How many people are waiting for an organ transplant?

There were 1887 people on the official waiting list in November 2007. However, the waiting list is not truly reflective of the scale of the need within Australia.

Because the number of donors is so low, thousands of people are not included on the official waiting list until they are in desperate need.

No-one knows the true scale of the problem, but far more than 1887 Australians could benefit from a transplant today.

Source: Australia and New Zealand Organ Donor Registry (ANZOD). Waiting list numbers as at 5Nov 2007, Deceased transplants from 1 Jan 07 to 31 Oct 07

3. I've signed onto the Australian Organ Donor Registry, or ticked the organ donation box on my license, isn't that enough?

Unfortunately no. By signing a register you may think that everything will happen automatically and your decision to donate is likely to be ignored.

Firstly, it is not your decision to make.

If you die in a situation where organ or tissue donation is possible, the decision to donate is no longer yours. Your family or next of kin will make the decision for you and therefore your last wish may be ignored - irrespective of whether you recorded it or not.

Secondly, the register may not be accessed.

In many cases, the medical team will not access the register prior to consulting with your family for fear they will coerce them into making the wrong decision.

It can be a difficult and painful time for your family and the easy decision when confronted with a death, is to say no.

Experience shows that family members are far more likely to donate if they understand and support your last wish to save lives.

4. Don't we just need more people to sign up their willingness to donate?

We have one of the highest rates of registered potential donors in the world – nearly 6 million people - which is a wonderful reflection of how positive and generous Australians are towards organ and tissue donation.

But there has been no strong correlation between increasing the number of registrations to the number of donors.

5. How many people can one donor help?

This depends on the individual case. On average a single donor helps 3-4 people but he/she can potentially help many more.

Organs: heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, pancreas, and
Tissue: heart valves, bone tissue, skin tissue, cornea (eye tissue), pancreas tissue.

You can specify which organs and / or tissues you wish to donate. Donated tissue and organs will not be used for medical research unless explicit written permission is granted.

6. Who can donate organs and tissue?

Anyone can donate organs and tissue—there is no age limit on the donation of some organs and tissue. While your age and medical history will be considered, you shouldn’t assume you are too young, too old, or not healthy enough.

7. How successful are organ transplants?

Transplants are now considered a mainstream medical treatment rather than an experimental, extraordinary miracle. Success rates are over 90% survival after one year. In Australia, kidney recipients, for example, have lived an extra 40 years or more thanks to being given their transplant.

8. How can I be sure that I’m really dead when they take my organs?

In most cases, a person may only donate organs where they have been declared brain dead in an Intensive Care Unit. Brain death, when blood circulation to the brain ceases and the brain stops functioning and dies, is quite different from a coma where there is still brain function – you cannot recover from brain death. Medical tests can clearly distinguish between brain death and coma. Two senior doctors using these clinical tests independently assess whether a person is brain dead.

Organ donation may also be possible after a person’s heart has stopped beating, referred to as “cardiac death”, but this is less common.

9. But won't the doctors hurry my death so they can take my organs?<.p>

Absolutely not.

The doctors caring for you in the Intensive Care Unit work separately from the organ transplantation team and are only concerned with the wellbeing of you and your family members.

10. How are organs and tissues removed?

It is important that the organs are retrieved in perfect condition so the organ donor's body is treated as carefully and respectfully as if the donor were still alive. The removal of organs and tissue is no different from any other surgical operation, and is performed by highly skilled health professionals.

The organs are removed and the wounds are closed using precise and sterile surgical techniques. The donation of organs and tissue does not alter the physical appearance of the body and families are encouraged to see their relative again, nor does it affect funeral arrangements.

11. I don't think my religion allows organ donation?

All major religions support organ donation. It is encouraged as it saves lives.

12. If I need an organ transplant will I get one?

Currently there is no certainty that you will get a transplant if you need one.

Any person who is a resident of Australia has equal access to transplantation. However, Australia's donation rate is currently one of the worst in the western world. Only about 200 people become organ donors each year. Many people are on the waiting lists to receive new organs and some die before they receive a suitable transplant. As our population increases and ages, organ transplants will be in even greater demand.

13. Why is Australia’s organ donor rate so low?

There are three main reasons why Australia’s rate is so low compared to the rest of the world. We don’t identify every potential donor within the hospital, we don't always ask the family member for their consent and more families say no in Australia than in some other countries.

14. Is transplantation a cost effective treatment?

Transplantation is a highly cost effective treatment.

For example, to keep someone with renal failure alive costs an average $42,000 per annum for kidney dialysis, which means the person spends about 5 hours, 3 times a week having their blood ‘cleansed’. A kidney transplant costs around $40,000 for the first year and then up to $11,000 per year. Not only is a transplant cheaper but it also provides a much better quality of life. These costs do not include disability pensions which no longer need to be paid when, in many cases, the transplant recipient can return to work.