the reason people dont sign up is that they dont get rtound to it.
BBC DoNation survey reveals UK are happy to donate their organs but are keeping it to themselves!
A BBC survey for its DoNation season has revealed that a massive 90% of UK adults are in favour of organ donation. But, an astonishing 51% said they had never even discussed this important subject with those close to them. DoNation, from Monday 22 to Saturday 27 August, aims to get this subject out of the closet once and for all.
The survey uncovered further surprising information about the UK?s attitude towards organ donation and transplantation... Most people vastly over-estimated the number of organ transplants carried out last year with a third believing it to be 7,708 which is, in fact, the number of people in the UK who need a transplant (data from UK Transplant, May 2005). Due to a shortage of donors only 2,724 organ transplants were carried out last year. But, two out of three people questioned said that they would accept an animal?s organ if their life depended on it and if it was medically possible.
The survey asked why people hadn?t joined the NHS Organ Donor Register and almost half (45%) said they hadn?t really thought about it. A third (30%) of respondents wanted to but hadn?t got round to it; and 13% said they?d like to sign up but didn?t know how.
Of the one in ten who did not wish to donate their organs, the survey highlighted various misconceptions:
Over half said that they didn?t want their body to be experimented on after their death
A third believed they were too old or unwell for their organs to be of any use
A fifth were concerned that doctors wouldn?t fight as hard to save them if they knew they wished to be a donor, or feared that they might not really be dead if and when the decision is made to take their organs
A quarter felt it would be tempting fate if they now made the decision to join the register
In fact, all these concerns are incorrect and unfounded but it does show that there are inaccuracies in people?s perception of what organ donation involves.
Professor Robert Winston, who presents some of the programming, commented: ?DoNation aims to address these issues so that people are able to make a properly informed decision about whether to join the Organ Donor Register . It?s not easy to get people to address their own mortality but statistically we are more likely to need a transplant than to donate an organ so I hope this season will get more people thinking and talking about this important subject.?
There is a startling lack of knowledge about the human body amongst some people as 17% did not know that the cornea is found in the eye. And a quarter didn?t know what the kidneys do - 3% believe this vital organ helps improve a person?s sex drive!
Six out of ten respondents believe there should be a change in the law to an opt-out system. This would mean that everyone in the UK is automatically considered a potential donor unless they have specifically registered that they do not wish to be.
Read more about the opt in/opt out debate
When asked about their own organs, over half (54%) of those questioned said they were most concerned about their heart. The lungs were the main worry for one in six. Of these, unsurprisingly, over half were smokers but - in what might be a growing sign of the times - just over one in 10 expressed concerns about the effect of pollution on their lungs.
DoNation on the BBC aims to raise awareness by explaining the facts and dispelling the myths about organ donation and transplantation. It aims to enable people to make an informed decision about whether they wish to donate their organs in the event of their death and highlight the importance of making family and friends aware of this decision. For those who would like further information or decide they would like to add their name to the NHS Organ Donor Register, the BBC is providing a variety of routes, via phone - 0800 068 8456, web ? bbc.co.uk/donation , and interactive red button.