According to the U.S. Government Information on Organ Donation and Transplantation, “The current number of men, women, and children on the national transplant waiting list is over 119,000. Nearly 2 out of every 3 waiting are over the age of 50 and almost 2,000 children under the age of 18 are on the waiting list.” (Organ Donation Statistics, 2015). Unfortunately, the number of people waiting on the transplant list and the number of people who are registered to be an organ donor do not match. In fact, according to the U.S. Government Information on Organ Donation and Transplantation, “Ninety-five percent of U.S. adults support organ donation, but only forty-eight percent are actually signed up as donors.” (Organ Donation Statistics, 2015). …show more content…
First, prolonged suffering of the family of a donor is a major con of organ donation. “Most of the time, the family of the deceased donors are not informed that the body will be kept on life support until the organ will be harvested. So, the donor’s body remains warm and breathing until it is taken off life support. In most cases, this can be traumatizing for the surviving family. Also, if there is still some form of brain activity, a donor will continue to be on life support. The hope lingers for the family, while it gradually wanes for the recipient. Some families also have a problem as to who will receive the organ, as some of them may have something against a religion, gender, or race. Unfortunately, donated organs to the United Network for Organ Sharing are distributed without preferential treatment, which can be devastating for the surviving family members.” (pros and cons, 2015). Prolonged suffering for the recipient occurs since it is such a stressful experience, especially when the time between waiting and surviving is very slim. “The reality, however, is that waiting for a heart takes an average 113 days, while waiting for a kidney takes an average 1,219 days.” (pros and cons, 2015). Studies have shown that one out of ten people who received an organ transplant can develop diabetes, which increases the risk of organ rejection, developing dangerous diseases, or even death. The possibility of the transplant being rejected by the body is high and it may take weeks to months before the body starts to reject the organ, in a worst-case scenario it may even be minutes after the procedure takes place. Organ transplants often comes with the possibility of surgery complications. For instances, kidney transplants may not work right away, and the recipient must be places back on dialysis until the kidney begins to work. Also, visible lasting scars occur from the organ transplant surgery. Lastly, added costs for per and
First of all, we can assess issues concerning the donor. For example, is it ever ethically acceptable to weaken one person’s body to benefit another? It has to be said that the practiced procedures are not conducted in the safest of ways, which can lead to complications for both donors and recipients (Delmonico 1416). There are also questions concerning of informed consent: involved donors are not always properly informed about the procedure and are certainly not always competent to the point of fully grasping the situation (Greenberg 240). Moral dilemmas arise for the organ recipient as well. For instance, how is it morally justifiable to seek and purchase organs in foreign countries? Is it morally acceptable to put oneself in a dangerous situation in order to receive a new organ? Some serious safety issues are neglected in such transactions since the procedures sometimes take place in unregulated clinics (Shimazono 959). There is also the concept of right to health involved in this case (Loriggio). Does someone’s right to health have more value than someone else’s? Does having more money than someone else put your rights above theirs? All of these questions have critical consequences when put into the context of transplant tourism and the foreign organ trade. The answers to these questions are all taken into account when answering if it is morally justifiable to purchase
When viewing organ donation from a moral standpoint we come across many different views depending on the ethical theory. The controversy lies between what is the underlying value and what act is right or wrong. Deciding what is best for both parties and acting out of virtue and not selfishness is another debatable belief. Viewing Kant and Utilitarianism theories we can determine what they would have thought on organ donation. Although it seems judicious, there are professionals who seek the attention to be famous and the first to accomplish something. Although we are responsible for ourselves and our children, the motives of a professional can seem genuine when we are in desperate times which in fact are the opposite. When faced with a decision about our or our children’s life and well being we may be a little naïve. The decisions the patients who were essentially guinea pigs for the first transplants and organ donation saw no other options since they were dying anyways. Although these doctors saw this as an opportunity to be the first one to do this and be famous they also helped further our medical technology. The debate is if they did it with all good ethical reasoning. Of course they had to do it on someone and preying upon the sick and dying was their only choice. Therefore we are responsible for our own health but when it is compromised the decisions we make can also be compromised.
The question arises about the ethics of making organ donation mandatory. From religions to freedom to fear, there are many pros and cons between the legality of the situation, but it all boils down to the freedom citizens have been given, which makes mandatory organ donation unethical. Lately, this has been an increasingly debated topic worldwide, as many people question the ethics of making organ donation mandatory. Organ transplantation is a surgical procedure, where a failing or damaged organ is replaced with a new one, either from a living or deceased donor. Any part of the body that performs a specialized function is classified as an organ. People can become organ donors by listing it on their driver’s license or signing a document with
Wolfe, R., Merion, R., Roys, E., & Port, F. (2009). Trends in Organ Donation and Transplantation in the United States, 1998-2007. American Journal of Transplantation , 9, 869-878.
This limitation has made it very crucial to understand why some people would oppose donation. Countries have become multicultural and many social, religious and cultural issues have been related to human organ donation and transplantation. It is of great importance to inform and educate donors and recipients how it works and how they will still survive. There is a great deal of misconception of organ donation and procurement and these misconceptions should be corrected. Some people believe that the donor’s body is mistreated and is mutilated whereas a surgical operation is done to remove the organs without disfiguring the body hence normal funeral arrangements are still possible. It has also been identified that there is a general fear among the community that, if involved in an accident, doctors would not try to save one’s life if he knows that the patient is a
Mandatory organ donation would consist of passing a law wherein the government mandates organ donation from every person who dies. In other words, unless a person chooses to opt out of the donation process, he or she is automatically an organ donor by law. According to Spranger (2012), organ donation is a gift of life and by donating organs after we die, we can literally bring someone back to life. It is a pretty good gesture; however, it could be argued that everyone should want to donate their organs when they die and consent for donation should be speculated. One of the arguments against mandatory organ donation is you don't own your body once you die. The assumption is that the body would belong to the government and not to the family.
Researchers claim that less than half of all eligible organ donors actually become organ donors.
With a success rate between 80 and 90 percent organ donation has become a reliable and efficient option for people all over the world (LiveOnNy, 2016).
Unfortunately, the life-saving potential of transplantation is limited by the shortage of organs available for donation. In general, several suitable organs from deceased individuals are not harvested for donation (for reasons that will be discussed later) and this largely contributes to the shortage1. In 1968, the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act gave individuals the right to donate organs and tissue in the United States1. Donors can either be living or deceased. Living donors are individuals who choose to donate portions of vital organs or a single kidney. Their donations can be directed to a specific recipient or can be an indirect altruistic donation; however, altruistic donations are very rare. Majority of donations come from deceased donors2. Deceased donors are individuals who have been medically declared dead, and who have previously registered as organ donors or whose legal representatives (usually their family members) have authorized organ donation on their behalf. One deceased donor can make up to eight donations from different organs, and therefore, can save up to eight lives4. Candidates for donation are chosen based on their blood-type (it must match the donated organ) and their medical need for a donation (the most critically ill patients are more likely to receive donations). The organs that are currently approved for transplantation are the kidney, heart, lung, and liver. Although living donations are a significant proportion of donations in the United States, this paper will focus on increasing the number of deceased
The uncontainable despair of the weeping and screaming parents entering a room full of body bags containing the altered remains of their children. In a room drained with blood and surrounding fridges for the maintenance of the ejected organs, everything seems miserably surreal(“Children Kidnapped for Their Organs”). This is only one of the discovered cases of the daily dozens of people killed for organ harvestation. Adding up to ten thousand illegal operations in 2012 which translates to hourly sales (Samadi). These abhorrent acts add up as crimes against humanity which are triggered by a numerous amount of reasons; in order to stop these constant atrocities we must uncover the root of the causes.
Organ transplantation is apperceived as one of the most prehending achievements for preserving life in medical history. This procedure provides a means of giving life to patience’s who suffer from terminal organ failure, which requires the participation of individuals; living or deceased, to donate their organs for the more preponderant good of society.
One of the most important and prevalent issues in healthcare discussed nowadays is the concern of the organ donation shortage. As the topic of organ donation shortages continues to be a growing problem, the government and many hospitals are also increasingly trying to find ways to improve the number of organ donations. In the United States alone, at least 6000 patients die each year while on waiting lists for new organs (Petersen & Lippert-Rasmussen, 2011). Although thousands of transplant candidates die from end-stage diseases of vital organs while waiting for a suitable organ, only a fraction of eligible organ donors actually donate. Hence, the stark discrepancy in transplantable organ supply and demand is one of the reasons that exacerbate this organ donation shortage (Parker, Winslade, & Paine, 2002). In the past, many people sought the supply of transplantable organs from cadaver donors. However, when many ethical issues arose about how to determine whether someone is truly dead by either cardiopulmonary or neurological conditions (Tong, 2007), many healthcare professionals and transplant candidates switched their focus on obtaining transplantable organs from living donors instead. As a result, in 2001, the number of living donors surpassed the number of cadaver donors for the first time (Tong, 2007).
In this paper I will be using the normative theory of utilitarianism as the best defensible approach to increase organ donations. Utilitarianism is a theory that seeks to increase the greatest good for the greatest amount of people (Pense2007, 61). The utilitarian theory is the best approach because it maximizes adult organ donations (which are the greater good) so that the number of lives saved would increase along with the quality of life, and also saves money and time.
Organ donation is often perceived with doubt because many people do not know the truth. There are many myths out about the donating of organs that cause many people to opt not to. What many do not realize is the truth about organ donation. The body of the donor after the surgery is not mangled up and is presentable for the funeral. Organ donation is ethical and should not be looked down upon. Organ donating is there to save lives, not to hurt anyone. Many people think that they should be paid or given something in return for donating their organs, which is...
Each day, 120 people are added to the ever-growing organ waiting list. An astonishing 41% of these unfortunate people, that's about 50, will die due to the lack of donor organs in ... ... middle of paper ... ... nd of donor organs.