Organ Shortage, Waiting Lists, and Mortality: Inadequate or Discussed Social Education?

Abstract

Amongst the significant advances in current medicine, the successful transplantation of organs is undoubtedly of particular social interest. However, the increase in patients on waiting lists, as well as the consistent and sometimes frequent mortality of those patients, hoping for an organ that, unfortunately, will not arrive, has caused a health crisis called the “organ shortage”. This severe health emergency requires a deep analysis of the potential reasons for the social ambivalence toward organ donation, particularly in the case of the death of a loved one. The possibility that misinformation and the lack of public knowledge are fundamental barriers to consent requires an analysis of the current educational programs with the aim of improving the awareness of the general population. Negative consent to donation is particularly frequent in cases of the death of a loved one. Considering the significant social importance of consent, mainly in the case of deceased donors, the review of social programs should prioritize all the potential alternatives to improve people’s acknowledgment of the organ shortage crisis. New proposals, which might create further doubt and produce complex reactions at all levels of society, should be presented correctly in transplantation program reviews. Every proposal requires a didactic discussion by experts in social sciences on people’s consent in the case of deceased organ donation.