Organ donation is the process of donating and documenting the organs of people with their free will while they are alive, after they are diagnosed as brain dead, in order to be used in the treatment of other diseases. For organ donation to be possible,
- The organ donor is in the intensive care unit,
- There must be a brain death verdict.
It is not always possible for these two conditions to be met together. However, in other cases of death, organs cannot be used. In other words, even if donation has been made, organs cannot be transplanted to others.
Today, with the increase in diseases and the development of treatment methods, the processes of being treated with organ donation have also progressed. However, the lack of organ donation causes many patients to be unable to receive treatment while waiting for organ donation and the worst case, death, occurs.
In our country, some conditions are required for organ donation. These are as follows
- 18 years of age,
- According to Law No. 2238, anyone of sound mind can donate some or all of their organs.
However, even if there is a donor card issued with organ donation, permission is still required from the family of the brain-dead donor. For this reason, it is important that organ donors tell their families that they want to or have already donated organs. For those who donate organs but then change their mind, it is sufficient to destroy the donor card and tell their families that they have decided not to donate.
What is Organ Transplantation?
Organ transplantation is the process of replacing an organ/organs that is too sick or damaged to fulfill its function or that has become harmful to the body with a new and healthy one. There are two sources of donors in organ transplantation. The first of these is the living donor. These people are generally the relatives up to the fourth degree of the person to be transplanted or the relatives of his/her spouse. The second donor is the dead, or cadaveric donor. These are people who are brain dead in the intensive care units of hospitals.
Today, approximately 80% of donors for organ transplantation are living donors and 20% are deceased donors. This ratio is subtracted from kidney transplants. This is because patients waiting for a liver transplant have a very low chance of receiving a transplant from a living donor, whereas there is no chance of finding a living donor source for the heart or other organs. Without deceased organ donation, people with these organs lose their lives while waiting on organ donation waiting lists.
Information is Important for Organ Donation / Transplantation
In our country, the Ministry of Health and the organ transplantation departments of hospitals are working more and more effectively every day to raise public awareness on this issue. Contrary to popular belief, brain death cases are not rare in intensive care units. However, there is not enough organ donation. One of the main reasons for this is that families do not know about organ donation and have not thought about such a possible situation before.
To understand organ transplantation, the first and important step is to understand what brain death means. Physiologically, the separation of the brain from the body is called brain death. Brain function is irreversibly lost. There is no blood supply to the brain. In such a situation, respiratory and cardiac functions can only be performed artificially with the help of devices in intensive care units. However, these devices cannot perform brain functions artificially. People are only considered dead when their brain is dead.
Often brain death and vegetative state are confused with each other. We can explain the concept of vegetative life with a small example. For example, let's break one of two flowers and put it in a vase, and bury the other one back in the ground. If the flower we buried in the ground is well cared for, it can revive, and we can call this situation plant life. But the flower in the vase will dry up and disappear after a certain period of time. So there is no possibility of its revival. This is brain death.
Misconceptions about Organ Donation
Correct information is very important for organ donation. Because today, people who donate organs and carry their donor cards with them think that in case of an accident, they will be left to die for their organs, which is a misconception and leads to a decrease in donations.
Brain death is a prerequisite for organ transplantation. Organ transplantation requires specialized teams. This should be in a full-fledged hospital environment. Patients who are brain dead in intensive care units are kept alive for a while with the help of devices. In this process, the family's consent is obtained, which is mandatory even if the person has an organ donor card.
Deciding on brain death also depends on certain conditions. The determination of brain death is made in hospitals with intensive care units and by doctors specialized in two branches. When a person with an organ donor card has an accident, he/she may even need to be transported to the most specialized hospitals to determine brain death.
Is Organ Donation Permissible?
With the decision dated 06.03.1980 and numbered 396, the Supreme Board of Religious Affairs of the Ministry of Religious Affairs declared that organ transplantation is permissible. The same board also defined organ donation as the greatest help to a human being.
There is also a verse in the Holy Quran on this subject. In Surah Maide, verse 32, it is stated that the person who gives life to one person is as rewarded as if he had given life to all human beings. Not only in Islam, but in all religions, there are similar decisions regarding organ donation. Islam, in particular, commands the protection of the body and its well-being. Religious scholars also state that religion, language and race are not considered in organ transplantation.
To whom are the organs transplanted?
Another common misconception about organ transplantation is that donated organs will be donated to people with connections or acquaintances. This issue is completely wrong and again, it is a situation that reduces organ donation. Someone or some people are never given priority in organ transplantation. The National Coordination Center in Ankara, affiliated to the Ministry of Health, has a list of patients who will receive organs. This list includes
- Medical urgency,
- Blood type,
- Tissue group matching,
- Age is determined according to criteria such as height and weight.
The list of patients who will receive organs never discriminates on the basis of race, religion or poverty or wealth.
Many people in poor economic situations also think that donated organs are sold. This is an impossible situation. Because it is not known in advance to whom the tissue of a brain-dead person will match. This can only be determined by comparing the list of the National Coordination Center with the brain dead person. Confidentiality is also guaranteed in organ donation if requested by the family. In case of confidentiality, everyone involved in this process is warned.
Organ harvesting is carried out by surgical teams in accordance with the conditions of the operation. The body of the person whose organs have been removed is delivered to the family with the body integrity intact, with hidden stitches and wounds on the skin closed. Because that body is very important.
It should not be forgotten that the purpose of organ donation is to save lives. In this respect, it is important to raise public awareness and sensitivity. Organ donation is giving life to those in need. In order to save lives, it is necessary to donate organs and raise awareness of the people around us.