Organ donation
Deceased
Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Organ/Tissue Donation and Transplantation Among Health Care Professionals Working in Organ Transplantation or Dialysis Units

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.transproceed.2011.01.167Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective

To evaluate the awareness and attitudes of health care professionals toward organ/tissue donation and transplantation.

Methods

We included 309 health care professionals from 27 dialysis centers and eight organ transplantation centers in Istanbu in the present study conducted from April 2008 to August 2008. The 24-item questionnaire, including items concerning sociodemographic features and knowledge about and attitudes toward organ/tissue donation and transplantation, was applied by face-to-face interviews.

Results

An organ/tissue donation card was completed among 77% of subjects, while 90% were identified as supporting transplantation. The main reasons identified for lack of donation were lack of confidence (59.7%), fear of procurement (31.5%), and inappropriate use of harvested organs (18.1%).

Conclusion

In conclusion, targeting health care professionals in the first place and development of nationwide media and educational campaigns on the ethical, moral, as well as religious dimensions of transplantation and donation seem crucial to increase the number of individuals who can act as role models via their positive impact on the general public's attitudes toward organ donation.

Section snippets

Materials and Methods

We included 309 subjects working at either dialysis (n = 222) or transplantation (n = 87) units across Istanbul in the present study, which was conducted between April and August 2008. A questionnaire was developed based on the literature, it contained 24 items concerning sociodemographic features, current knowledge, attitudes, and behavior concerning organ donation and transplantation. The questionnaire was applied to participants via face-to-face interviews.7, 8 Knowledge, beliefs, and

Results

All of the participants (n = 309) answered the questionaire. The female-to-male ratio was 246:63, and 222 of them were working in a dialysis unit and 87, in a transplantation unit. The number of the nurses and physicians were 249 and 60, respectively. Two hundred seventy-eight (90%) of the participants supported organ and tissue donation and transplantation. In contrast, 30 (9.7%) of them were not sure, and only one person was opposed to organ donation and transplantation. The percentage of

Discussion

In Turkey, as in the rest of world, the number of patients on waiting lists is increasing steadily due to the stagnant number of organ donations associated with the persistent organ shortage,2 leading to deaths on transplant waiting lists.9 The deficit in donations has been reported to be the result of insufficient public awareness about organ/tissue donation and procurement,1 areas for which health professionals appear to have pivotal roles,9 by providing most appropriate information to

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