Confidentiality On Organ Donors
The Age
Monday October 16, 1995
from Dr Larry McNicol, director of anaesthesia, Austin Campus, Austin and Repatriation Medical Centre.
The Age editorial (A Gift of Love, 12/10) is unfortunate in both its inaccuracy and its misconceptions concerning organ donors, recipients and their families.
I have spent considerable time over many years in intensive care dealing with organ donor families, as well as in the operating theatres for both donor procurement and transplant surgery. To suggest that doctors, nurses and other health care professionals involved in these activities ``lack compassion" and ``cut ethical corners" is irresponsible, alarmist and insulting.
The gift of life that is the ultimate gift of love is treasured by all. Everybody is affected emotionally by the inevitable proximity of the tragic death of an organ donor with the joy of life of the recipient, but it is this very closeness which makes this particular gift so ``special".
However, the existing confidentiality provisions preventing contact between donor families and transplant recipients are essential for obvious emotional reasons.
Gratitude from the recipient and grief relieving follow up for the donor families are currently communicated in a very well organised process by full-time transplant coordinators who are themselves extremely compassionate individuals, most of whom have come from a nursing background.
Larry McNicol, Heidelberg.
© 1995 The Age