Opting out of organ donation

[ringme]

So the law has changed and this spring the NHS will consider you to be an organ donor automatically if you don’t opt out. I haven’t had a chance to really consider this all yet, WIBU to opt out at this stage until I have time to think about it or is that a selfish move given that 408 people died last year waiting for a donor?

What will you be doing?

www.organdonation.nhs.uk/helping-you-to-decide/about-organ-donation/faq/what-is-the-opt-out-system

I’d be interested to hear the reasons why people don’t want to donate. I understand the womb thing, but why else?

Personally, I like the idea of giving precedence for getting an organ to those that opt in.

Organ donation should always be done on the basis of medical need. It shouldn’t be a quid pro quo.

No need to @ me, ScarlettBlaize, I'm here on the thread.

No need for the hyperbole either.

I take it support for the principle of 'presumed consent' relating to our bodies is horrifying in some circumstances, but objections to 'presumed consent' is horrifying in other circumstances, but to consider WHY is really uncomfortable for you so you'll just shout 'bollocks' to cover the fact you can't explain why.

Our bodies belong to us. Alive or dead, human dignity is afforded to each of us by a civilised society. If someone wants cremation, we consider it morally wrong to disregard their wishes and bury them instead. Why should it matter, they're dead?
Because we respect people's wishes regarding their bodies, even if we would make different decisions.

I respect people's rights NOT to be an organ donor, although I am still one.
I oppose the principle of presuming an absence of any recorded consent should be taken as consent.

But purple if the family didn't have to consent it would be a lot easier, particularly if you don't know what the person would have answered to all the questions. You worry you got parts wrong - I think we did BUT it didn't happen thankfully (the cardiac arrest bit)

@formerbabe You sound insane.

Oh dear. You've resorted to personal insults because you can't make a substantive argument. Already?!

You might not like this, but I have absolutely no obligation to relinquish parts of my body to anyone else, just as no one is obligated to do the same for me.

Of course you're not obligated. If you want to be utterly selfish and you're quite happy with the possibility that you could save someone's life, but choose not to, at no cost to yourself, that's for you to live with.

Hypothetical situation. Someone wants to opt out. They plan on doing it later that day but they get hit by a bus before hand. Then what?

What about people without capacity to make decisions? What happens to them?

Interesting questions.

They're going to roll out a big awareness campaign before the Spring, so hopefully those questions will be answered.

I'm also hoping the campaign might help people 'disassociate' their living body parts with dead ones.

So far we've had one unwilling to donate their eyes and another unwilling to donate their womb.

I can understand the 'emotional connection' but I'm hoping the campaign will help people remove their emotions from what will effectively be just 'dead meat'.

But purple if the family didn't have to consent it would be a lot easier, particularly if you don't know what the person would have answered to all the questions.

Sorry, I might not have been clear. I meant the family of someone who had just been killed in a car accident might not be able to cope with their organs being removed.

What about people without capacity to make decisions? What happens to them?

The same as before. Their family decide.

If I'm dead they can have the lot. I don't care what it's used for...I don't need it anymore!
I work on the premise that if you'd be willing to take something you should be willing to give.

Barracker
I take it support for the principle of 'presumed consent' relating to our bodies is horrifying in some circumstances, but objections to 'presumed consent' is horrifying in other circumstances, but to consider WHY is really uncomfortable for you so you'll just shout 'bollocks' to cover the fact you can't explain why.

Nope. Not a difficult distinction at all.

Because when i was raped, I was a living person.

If my organs are donated, I will be dead. I will not be me. I will not in fact be a person. That's a pretty significant difference, wouldn't you say?

Our bodies belong to us. Alive or dead, human dignity is afforded to each of us by a civilised society. If someone wants cremation, we consider it morally wrong to disregard their wishes and bury them instead. Why should it matter, they're dead?

It doesn't.

Why a car accident specifically? What difference would that make?

I’m opting out, judge all you like.

Meh.
If taking bits out of a body I won't be using again will spare some other family the pain mine will be going through, then I'm all for it.

Why a car accident specifically? What difference would that make?

I just chose that as a sudden death that was totally unexpected and the family totally unprepared.

@ScarlettBlaize you have a very simplistic view of this. Even if you opt in to donate everything you can, and assuming you die in such a way and in such a place that would enable your organs to be donated, in all probability over half of the organs you could donate will either not be harvested, will not be a suitable match, a suitable match cannot be found in time, will not be in a sufficient condition for transplant, or may be rejected by the donee.

The failure rate of organ donation and the level of wastage is extremely high.

So there is no point telling other posters that their refusal to be on the organ donation register will directly cause people to die. Even if they were on the organ donation register, the odds are that they wouldn't save any lives anyway.

I agree with organ donation but let's be sensible about this and deal in facts rather than hyperbole.

My best mate died, he was an organ doner, he gave sight to two people, I dont understand why anyone would want to opt out, then your gone your gone.

I am an organ donor.
I think perhaps to address the presumed consent issue, the government could add it to routine documents they send 16yr olds. Like when they get their NINO or register to vote. Just add a check box for them to opt out of organ donation.

Do one mass mailing for adults now with instructions on how to do it online or by post. They’ve put out online notices but some elderly are not online.

When immigrants get their NINO or NHS number, have a tick box for organ donation opt out.

I agree there should be a choice offered to each person at least once in their life either when they turn 16 or immigrate to the U.K.

@DifficultPifcultLemonDifficult I am so sorry for your loss and respect and admire your decision to donate your child's organs. .

Of course the dead deserve dignity. If we're just 'dead meat' as a pp said, necrophilia would be just fine and dandy.

My only fear with organ donation is whether they rush family members to turn off life support in order to provide organs to other people... is this a legitimate worry?

I used to have an Organ donor card but my parents expressed concerns about the above.

I'll be opting out on principle. In theory, I have no objection to my organs being donated but I dislike the presumption and find it a troubling infringement on our autonomy

Utterly pathetic. Do you simply opt out of everything in life?

Why don’t you opt out of paying tax too.

What about people without capacity to make decisions? What happens to them?

The same as before. Their family decide.

And where there is no family? Or there are barriers to understanding whats going on?

It makes it more difficult for vulnerable people.Which is why I find the system troubling.

@Lockheart ScarlettBlaize you have a very simplistic view of this. Even if you opt in to donate everything you can, and assuming you die in such a way and in such a place that would enable your organs to be donated, in all probability over half of the organs you could donate will either not be harvested, will not be a suitable match, a suitable match cannot be found in time, will not be in a sufficient condition for transplant, or may be rejected by the donee. The failure rate of organ donation and the level of wastage is extremely high. So there is no point telling other posters that their refusal to be on the organ donation register will directly cause people to die. Even if they were on the organ donation register, the odds are that they wouldn't save any lives anyway. I agree with organ donation but let's be sensible about this and deal in facts rather than hyperbole.

That's irrelevant. I understand that in practice not all willing organ donors will be able to donate their organs and save someone's life. But many do.

And the point is that those people who actively remove themselves from the register are ensuring that they definitely won't.

Awful law. I'd hate to accept what is essentially a n organ stolen from the dead.

I don't think they can use mine anyway as I'm unvaccinated.

I think though organ donation purple is generally sudden shocking deaths of whatever type where people are 'lucky' enough to make it to intensive care.

My own experience is if we hadn't had to consent to stuff and answer a load of questions in our horrified, shocked state it would have been easier. We wrongly put a DNR on her that she wouldn't have wanted I don't think in the heat of that moment. It was absolutely horrendous.