Should organ donation be made mandatory when we die? (In other words, should hospitals assume everyone wishes to donate their organs when they die in order to save others?)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Nullius in Verba
School e-Magazine
Dept. Website
Winchester Debates
Flipped Classroom
Film Club
Astronomy Club
Cafe Sci Dxb
Badminton Club
IGCSE E1L Revision
Professional Development
Winchester TEDx Events
Raya's Outstanding Student Blog
Kindness Anonymous
Winchester Students
Shelfari
Critical Thinking Blog
Must-watch online documentaries
51 comments:
No.
Firstly, hospitals have no right to assume control over someone else's organs, for it would just be more profitable for the hospital. Secondly, organs get rejected more than they get accepted in organ transplants, so about 60% of the organs taken from dead bodies would be rejected, so it would become a waste. Thirdly, it would all be in the benefit of the hospital, for they have been atempting to persuade people to keep donating their organs from, at least, 20 years ago.
On the other hand, it might save lives, because those other 40% can save alot of people alot of pain, and death, but, what would happen to the person that died, who's ogans were removed? Overall, the majority of people who die every year, those who smoke and as such, will not have healthy organs, and, if an organ transplant occurs, it might make the patient worse then their current position, thus doctors would face an even more challenging opposition.
Furthermore, the amount of money it would take to extract all the organs from alot of dead people, then extracting the healthy ones, would probably not decrease the current organ transplantation's price enough, therefore you still have the same problem where the poor cannot have a good, healthy organ. Not only this, but all it would take is one mistake, one virus to enter the organ during the transplant process, for that patient to die, and, a disease might suddenly erupt and spread to other people. It will make things much more complicated than they already are, since the overall amount of useful, healthy organs needed, will be much much less than the amount taken from alot of dead people, and there will not be enough storage space for them all.
It is just too complex an issue, but, scientifically, it would not make sense to extract so many organs, when the patient/s can easily reject it. And how do we know that the hospitals actually put them to good use? How do we know that the hospitals wont aim for profit? Its happening in the insurance companies in America, where they reject alot of cases, so that they gain profit, so how can it be ensured that the hospitals dont do the same?
Even if it will save a huge amount of lives, taking the organs of someone - dead or alive - without their permission is still stealing. So, no. I don't think it should be made mandatory so to speak, but it should be...encouraged, I suppose. An individual should declare during his or her lifetime whether or not they wish their organs to be donated but it should only extend to people who actually have healthy organs. No point in donating your ruptured spleen to anyone.
On another note, who here would be willing to donate their organs? I wouldn't mind donating mine, I guess.
At the moment, most countries have an "opt in" approach towards organ donation. This means, if you want to be an organ donor you get a card to indicate you'd like to donate your organs and carry it with you.
Some countries are thinking of replacing this with an "opt out" approach. This means, if you don't want to be an organ donor you have to get a card to indicate this and carry it with you.
I, personally favour the second approach. Far too many people are on waiting lists for livers, eyes, kidneys, etc. This is an appalling situation - that so many living people should be suffering when dead people are buried with all their organs intact.
We are so eager to take other people's organs and blood when we need it - but so reluctant to give ours - even when we don't need it after death.
I, for one, hope to donate everything - my eyes, heart, kidney, liver, spleen, lungs... They can use the rest of my body for dissection practice. At least my death will be benificial to humanity. (If they can use my organs - fine. If not, they can chuck it, what do I care - I'd be dead :)
That is quite morbid for me to think about, I will admit, i'm very much afraid of death! Still, i believe that choice should be left in our hands. Fortunately their are still many generous people on this planet willing to give their organs, let's just pray the world doesn't run out of them. :)
^ Sabrina,
The world is terribly short of organ donors. Have you seen the number of people waiting desperately on the waiting list? It's disgraceful - we are disgraceful. I agree, it's a morbid topic - but if we don't think about it while we are alive - we certainly won't think about it when we're dead :)
I think it should be made mandatory because thinking about it logically what use are organs to us once we are dead and gone...but think about the life of a baby or an adult you could save, giving a person the chance to life a longer life that you missed out on for whatever reason.. I feel it’s selfish not to give another person an organ which could be used for a better purpose then just rotting away. And in this world there is a shortage of organs and a lot of people are in greater need of them..
People suffering today because of wars around the world, even the hundreds who are born with abnormalities, it just feels unfair that those people suffer today because not many healthy people in this world are ready to donate their organs once their dead and its of no use to them.
Isn’t our purpose in life to serve mankind if we have the ability??? And to answer the question, why wouldn’t you want to save somebody else’s life especially if you’re not here anyway??
People everywhere are one short of a kidney, bone marrow, a liver, a heart, an eye...
In my opinion, I wouldnt want perfectly good organs to go to waste by being left to rot under the ground. I would like to be beneficial and to help, even if I'm six feet under the ground.
Personally, I wouldnt mind at all, but my family may have some objections, because after all, who wants to see their loved one ( even if dead) hacked to pieces?
People should still be given the choice, since mutilating a body that's supposed to be resting in peace is just plain wrong. Respect the dead and their wishes.
The 'opt out' option seems like a good idea.
Although, I think their consciences should be attacked and attacked all over and over again until they finally give in and donate their organs. :P mwahahaha
Well. This Topic has been solved by the first post.
I don't see much reason to post my opinion since both sides of the arguement have been met and anymore post that will be done will simply repeat what someone else said only with different use of diction.
I feel kind bad for saying but the blogsite has kind of lost it's interesting factors, it's become a cycle
Mo will do some sort of amazing comment that shows all sides of the article with backup and facts.
everyone else will simply post there opinion and a few will be making us doubt ourselves.
I post with a slight twist to add some humour.
A endless cycle it has now become.
^ Zaid, wake up call - that's what a blog is all about. What do want - for the posts to leap out and dance for you?
p.s. I don't believe the issue has been "solved" in the first post. This is not a mathematical equation - but an ethical question. All we can have are opinions and try and give reasons for it and hope it might sound convincing :)
Well,
I think it should be made mandatory. The person is dead, why would he or she need that kidney or whatever organ and its not being disrespectful to the dead, your not exactly butchering his or her body, they carefully take the organ out to help another human being. Plus, I dont think the dead guy or his family wont mind, your helping another person, to live a longer life. Who wouldn't want that?
nikol
There are two approaches to this:
First would be that logically, dead people don't need their organs, while numerous living people do need them.
On the other hand, and this is where I stand, "mandatory" organ donation after death is as if one's making a declaration that the deceased's life was worthless. If one chooses not to donate their organs after death, then their life should be honored and respected enough to respect those wishes. It's just like a will, a dead person's wish, which we execute.
Personally, I wish more people would sign up for organ donation after their death. I, just like Mr. Roberts said, have no problem donating my own organs after my death. But when someone announces that they do NOT wish to donate their organs, I believe that wish NEEDS to be respected, whether their organs are useful to them after death or not.
Nadine
I agree with you - I too believe people's wishes should be respected. But I can't help wondering - why?
Why should we respect the wishes of all the selfish people who would rather see their organs rot under the soil and their body eaten by worms rather than help someone else?
If their organs are taken after death and their body neatly stiched back, it woulnd't make any REAL difference to anyone - and the dead guy wouldn't mind - coz, well... he's dead.
That, and his organs will disappear shortly anyway.
No, hospitals have no right to choose that and they shouldn't... BUT all people should be sensible enough to know that their organs aren't gonna do them any favours and they could save someone elses life at no expense.
I don't think hospitals have the right to make it mandatory, but I think people themselves should decide to make it mandatory. And for the minority that won't want to donate... they won't feel anything when they're dead :D
Myra,
Most good, generous, and selfless people like you would want to donate their organs (but they never get around to acquiring an organ donor card).
What if, goodness forbid, you were to die tomorrow crossing the street. You don't have a donor card, the hospital doesn't know you wish to save other people's lives, and your parents may be against donating your organs - so as things stand, your body will be buried with all your organs intact and nobody on the donor waiting list benefits.
This is what happens with the vast majority of people :(
Of course it should be. Why people would want to keep their organs is beyond me... I mean do they know what happens to their body in that coffin? Within a few years theres just bones left and not long after that... I'm sure it just turns into dust.
But i guess its preference... But honestly they wont have strong reasons to disagree. I can understand in some cases why relatives of the dead would strongly disagree to such a thing when the patient dies... But thats a spur-of-the-moment thing, and a decision that needs to be taken away in order to save lives.
And when I say "save lives" i fully understand that sometimes these donated organs can not be put to use sometimes... But if there is even a 1% chance of saving someones life, I will never be able to understand why someone would tick the "No" box.
Sir,
I agree that it just doesn't make much sense that we respect the wishes of a dead person, especially when by not respecting them, we're saving lives.
But this is a moral question, and if I were an official at a hospital, I'd find myself in a real predicament. But the bottom line would be this: I will not be able to get myself to extract organs from a dead man's body against their wishes during their lives. Consequently, I'd have this insufferable burden of guilt on my shoulders for letting someone else die. But it wasn't my own body, so I couldn't call the shots.
I think the opt out approach is quite a smart one. If someone wishes NOT to donate their organs, then they should get a card instead of the other way round. So many of us don't get around to even handing important assessments on time, getting a donor card would probably be at the bottom of the priority list.
And anyway, organs aren't of much use to a person once they're dead, seriously. It's like a tonsil or appendix operation. Just like you don't mind removing the useless little flap on your bowel, I don't see what's so offensive about having useless organs taken out of you for the lifesaving benefit of another. Because once you're dead that's exactly what your organs will be to you: useless.
Donating organs shoud actually be made mandatory in all hospitals. It's like how Mr. Roberts said- you are going to be DEAD! It isn't like you will use it in ur after life or whatever. But choosing to donate your organs is a very noble thing to do. You never know the number of people you may be able to save because in cases such as liver transplant, you only need a small part of the healthy liver to be transplanted in to the damaged one.
Last year my cousin's cousn was murdered by her own husband and her friend was also killed as he, the friend had tried to stop that guy. And the friend who died (his name was Dennis) had is hearts and lungs donated to another man. Just think-anyway Dennis wouldnt ever need his heart or lungs again and donating it helped save a life.
I guess they should make this a mandatory process because, as countless of other posts have stated the same thing, once we are dead, we're not exactly using our organs are we?
But those who do not want to give away their organs also have a right in the matter. Of course, others will judge them and say that they are completely selfish and are being absurd as they will not have any use of their organs once dead, but they might have been mislead into thinking that their body parts would be used for harmful purposes like selling them to the highest bidder, or tricking another person who needs an organ when in fact the organ is unhealthy and would make them a whole lot worse instead of better. And so the person probably wouldn't want to donate his/her organs. Though these people could be an insignificant percentage, when compared to the amount willing to donate.
Everything and every being has its own special stereotyped history, but not everyone can see past those lies or possible lies to see that there are benefits that could be gained even after losing everthing.
Sure, for all those who for some weird reason 'need' their organs in their 'after-life', the opt-out card is a good idea.
Everyone's already said it, but yes, what use will our organs be once we are decaying away? Just imagine the sheer amount of people who's lives will be saved thanks to ourselves; and we won't even be alive to see it! We would still be helping the world, contributing to humanity, even after having left it. Wouldn't that make anyone fill with pride? And happiness. Satisfaction. Of knowing that after your death, you are still helping.
So yes, I am willing to donate anything possible after my death (and bury whatever's left of me=P)
And hm, we are trusting humanity and the society by giving up our organs, as we believe and hope that it reaches the right hands.
If it doesn't, that's their fault isn't it? We can't keep thinking of the negativities, of the 'what ifs'. We've done our job of letting our organs being donated once we pass away. What happens next, is not in our hands.
yes, think of the number of lives we could save!!
dead people aren't going to be using their organs anymore right? so why cant other people benefit from using them?
i definately would have no objections to organ donation being mandatory. once im older, im actually willing to donate my kidney when im still alive.
^ Wow Nishika, it's amazing and admirable that you are thinking of donating a kidney while you're still alive. I wish I could do that. But don't think I'm that generous :)
I believe that organ donation be made mandatory when we die because as you said sir we lack donors and a lot of people need those organs, If our organs can save million lives then why not? It’s for the better.
No, I dont think so. Organ donation should not be made mandatory. It should be upto the person to decide whether they want to give their organs to save others life. In some Religions, it is not allowed to interfere with ones body, after death. The only thing that is allowed is to bury or cremate them. And I dont think anyone would want to go against this. If they wish to donate any body part or even blood, it should be totally upto them.
^ Sonal V.
Just out of curiosity - why would a religion not want someone to donate their organs to help someone else live? I thought religion is meant to teach people to do good? :)
I thought so too..but in Our Year 9 Moral Science lesson, Mrs. Glenda raised this point when she asked Us to write up 3 laws We thought were necessary for the public to follow. I think it states that you cannot interfere with the body unless they allow you or something of that sort. But I'm pretty sure she said it does involve Religion restrictions when it comes to organ donation. When asked how did She know this, She said that She had Religious Studies as a Subject and She took it further in depth. Thats one reason why We agreed with her on that fact.
I don't think organ donation should be mandatory but as Neiha said encouraged.Organs can be taken out of a person's body only after the person has permitted it during his/her lifetime.
I personally wouldn't mind my organs donated after my death to save someone's life.
Aisha Bashir
10g2
^ So Sonal V., if a religion tells us we should burn or bury the body (and all the organs) instead of donating it, thus preventing us from saving someone else's life - should we obey that religious injuntion or should we ignore it?
I don't think any religion would condemn saving another's life through personal sacrifice, to be honest. Dead or alive :/
(again, this is neiha)
Sir, if one has been following His/Her religion for their whole life, why would they want to change that decision by going against one rules of that Religion? And as you said, if the person wasnt able to inform the people whether they can use his/her organs after death or not, then? - Then its his/her Family who will not let anyone use those organs. Its totally upto one to decide whether to go against those rules for the good of someone else or not. Many Religions allow this while some do not. I think the answers to many of the questions here are in this video:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/heart-of-jenin/video-does-your-religion-allow-organ-donation/5093/
^Sonal
I think it's important to think for ourselves and not blindly believe things. We have brains, we should use it to decide for ourselves whether something is right or wrong. And regardless of what this or that religion says I think it is outrageous to say it's better to allow organs to be burnt or decompose instead of using it to help others live.
I think people will only understand the gravity of the situation when they or their loved ones are in need of an organ and are put on a waiting list because there aren't any donors.
^Right Mr. Roberts, if you watched the video, you must have heard the interviewees saying that it is upto one to take this decision and in some cases Religion doesnt interfere at all. The Imam in the video, He puts forward an example of something that is prohibited in their Religion, and says you can do it, but the question is if you want to do it. As I have mentioned many times above, I believe it should be the right of one person to decide whether or not to donate his/her organs. Because thats where they put the "brains" to work.
^ Sonal
Taking a decision simply because a religion tells you to is not "putting your brains to work." That's simply following instructions - even a computer can do that.
But I agree with you that ultimately, if a person doesn't want to donate - he shouldn't be forced to - even though I'd have no respect for such a person. As I said in my first post, I favour an opt out policy. So by default we are all donors - unless we get a card saying we don't wish to donate.
Sir, its not 'taking a decision because the Religion tells you to', its taking into account all the consequnces or listening to others opinions and then using your own brain to take the ultimate decision. The opt out policy is a good idea, just like the one We had for the dental check up at School. It was a success as students had to take up the test. Instead of asking to sign up if they wanted to attend the check up, the School asked Us to sign up if We dont want the test as they knew many of the letters wouldnt be read. A bit more like of an eye-opener.
Noo!!!
Ok, maybe it's a good thing and serves for the good of the humanity and stuff, but I wouldnt like to be buried with an eye missing or my body without my heart. I, ofcourse, wont need it but still.
Yes
it makes good sense to donate one's organs after one's dead because the body ias juat that- dead... it is of no use to anyone and the person living in that body is no more.
Well donating the organs are one story, but what I find interesting is to WHOM they would want to donate it?
Example: A former science professor on his deathbed may ponder over whether to:
1) Donate CERTAIN body parts to save lives
OR
2) Donate his ENTIRE body to certain Institutions for education/research?
I dont think it should be made mandatory but why would someone want to die with all their organs intact while they can make certain people's lives easier if they donated their organs?
I think it should be greatly encouraged and the "opt out" approach should be used everywhere!
uhmmm No. i dont believe it should be mandatory but yes like many people have said it should be encouraged. I too have heard something along the lines of it being prohibited in some religions but i dot really agree with that. like Mr Roberts said we can think for ourselves if by donating an organ we stop the suffering of a person then why not?? we always preach about humanity and caring for others and bla bla bla but when it comes to things like this we all take a step back??
i would really like to donate my organs, i guess ill have to find out about this organ donor card thing??
Yes organ donation should be mandatory when we die as after death, the body organs are wasted either by burying the body and letting it decompose or burning the body to ashes. Instead if the healthy organ of that person is donated to one of the patients who are waiting in lists to get a donation (as there is a shortage of organs worldwide), the patient’s life due to this can be saved. If organ donation becomes mandatory after a person’s death, it can save many people’s life.
NO it shouldn't. like we discussed today at school it differs from person to person maybe someone would be okay with donating their organs and some wouldn't because no one knows what happens after death do we really just die? does our soul depart from our body? what actually happens? no one is ever to know.
This i would definitely do...i mean honestly what use are my body parts to me when I'm dead? if its going to benefit someone then i don't see the harm.
Post a Comment