Increasing Organ Donor Registrations in Motor Vehicles Offices Through Health Communication.

Abstract

Health communication research has played a prominent role in the body of scholarship seeking to meaningfully increase the number of life-saving organs available to waitlisted patients. The current paper builds on earlier work in communication seeking to promote organ donation to individuals in community and organizational settings. The goal of this essay is to review health communication-based interventions seeking to meaningfully increase organ donation registrations in motor vehicles' offices (DMV) transactions in the USA. For convenience, I use the acronym DMV, although it is understood different states use different titles for this office. Before describing the nature and impact of communication interventions and their impact in DMV contexts, I will provide context for the problem and briefly review the role of DMV registrations in relation to demand for organs in the United States.