The UK’s first ever opt-out organ donation scheme, where adults are presumed to have given consent, it set to be approved this week.
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| People living in Wales will be asked to either formally opt in to becoming an organ donor, or opt out |
The Welsh assembly is to vote on the controversial bill tomorrow which will
mean organs and tissues can be removed although a person never expressly
signed up to be a donor when they were alive.
If it is passed and the scheme proves successful it may pave the way for such
a system across the whole of the UK.
However, the Department of Health said that they are currently focussing on
improving voluntary donor numbers after a task force warned that deemed
consent could create "significant difficulties".
The Welsh assembly believe is could save dozens of lives every year by
increasing the number of organs available.
However, critics argue that it is deceitful to suggest lack of objection
amounts to consent, that it could cause extra heartache for families, and it
gives the government too much power over people’s bodies.
There has been a drop a recent drop in the number of organ donors in Wales,
and some believe that the plans, due to be introduced in 2015, could prompt
backlash.
Anyone over 18 will be presumed to have consented and express permission from family members will not be required, although they will be given the opportunity to argue that their loved one would not have wished to become a donor.
Medical professionals have expressed concern that the conflict between presumed consent and families wishes may put them in a difficult position.
Mark Drakeford, the Welsh health minister, pointed out that almost every week someone dies while on the waiting list.
Although in surveys two-thirds of people said that they would be happy to donate their organs, only a third of the population has actually signed up, he said.
"We have the enduring problem of not having enough organs for people who need them,” he told the Guardian.
If passed the bill would be the assembly’s most significant law since they were given full law-making powers and could have a “domino effect” across the UK, he said.
A number of faith groups have also expressed their objections, including members of the Muslim Council of Wales and the South Wales Jewish Representative Council.
Barry Morgan, the Archbishop of Wales, has also criticised the Human Transplantation (Wales) bill, claiming that becoming a donor was a "great act of love”, but presumed consent would transform it into a “medical use of a body".
Each donor has the potential to help nine people through donation of a heart, lungs, two kidneys, pancreas, liver and small bowel and two corneas.
Emma Harrison, whose five-year-old son Oliver is waiting for a heart transplant, backed the plans. "There are not enough hearts, which is incredibly scary. I'm just waiting for the call to say there is a heart for my Ollie. Most people would accept an organ if we needed it. Hopefully we should all be willing to give one too.”
Mr Drakeford has said that deemed consent will bring about a “cultural shift” in Wales.
The bill was amended to give families the “clear right” to object after concerns were raised during early readings.
“The presence of the family is essential – both as a source of necessary information about the potential donor and in order to ensure that donation does not go ahead in the face of the deceased’s known objection to organ donation,” Mr Drakeford said.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health said: "It's vital that we continue to give more people the opportunity of a transplant which is why people should discuss their wishes about organ donation with their loved ones.
"The independent Organ Donation Taskforce examined the case for moving to an opt-out system in 2008. They recommended against it, concluding that whilst such a system might have the potential to deliver benefits, it would present significant difficulties.
“We are working closely with the Welsh government to ensure their policy does not negatively impact on our work to promote voluntary organ donations.”
Anyone over 18 will be presumed to have consented and express permission from family members will not be required, although they will be given the opportunity to argue that their loved one would not have wished to become a donor.
Medical professionals have expressed concern that the conflict between presumed consent and families wishes may put them in a difficult position.
Mark Drakeford, the Welsh health minister, pointed out that almost every week someone dies while on the waiting list.
Although in surveys two-thirds of people said that they would be happy to donate their organs, only a third of the population has actually signed up, he said.
"We have the enduring problem of not having enough organs for people who need them,” he told the Guardian.
If passed the bill would be the assembly’s most significant law since they were given full law-making powers and could have a “domino effect” across the UK, he said.
A number of faith groups have also expressed their objections, including members of the Muslim Council of Wales and the South Wales Jewish Representative Council.
Barry Morgan, the Archbishop of Wales, has also criticised the Human Transplantation (Wales) bill, claiming that becoming a donor was a "great act of love”, but presumed consent would transform it into a “medical use of a body".
Each donor has the potential to help nine people through donation of a heart, lungs, two kidneys, pancreas, liver and small bowel and two corneas.
Emma Harrison, whose five-year-old son Oliver is waiting for a heart transplant, backed the plans. "There are not enough hearts, which is incredibly scary. I'm just waiting for the call to say there is a heart for my Ollie. Most people would accept an organ if we needed it. Hopefully we should all be willing to give one too.”
Mr Drakeford has said that deemed consent will bring about a “cultural shift” in Wales.
The bill was amended to give families the “clear right” to object after concerns were raised during early readings.
“The presence of the family is essential – both as a source of necessary information about the potential donor and in order to ensure that donation does not go ahead in the face of the deceased’s known objection to organ donation,” Mr Drakeford said.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health said: "It's vital that we continue to give more people the opportunity of a transplant which is why people should discuss their wishes about organ donation with their loved ones.
"The independent Organ Donation Taskforce examined the case for moving to an opt-out system in 2008. They recommended against it, concluding that whilst such a system might have the potential to deliver benefits, it would present significant difficulties.
“We are working closely with the Welsh government to ensure their policy does not negatively impact on our work to promote voluntary organ donations.”
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