Page 11 - UKTemplate

Organ donation
It can be di cult to even think about organ donation when you are in a situation where you are overwhelmed by di erent feelings and also daunted by the practicalities that death involves. However, if the deceased’s or the nearest relatives wish was to donate organs for transplant or even the whole body for medical research, you will have to act quickly.
If the next of kin does not object to organ donation and the death occurred in hospital, then
the head of the institution will be lawfully in possession of the body and they may honour the deceased’s request in writing or orally to two witnesses, for the body to be given for medical research. If the death was reported to the Coroner, he / she will have to give their consent before the body or organs can be donated. A medical certi cate must be issued before any organs can be removed or the body used. If the donor has been certi ed to be brain stem dead and when their breathing, and hence heartbeat, are maintained by
a ventilator in a hospital intensive care unit, then it is usual for the kidneys and essentials for the heart, lungs, liver and pancreas to be removed from donors.
Organs can be removed within a certain numbers of hours of the death, hence the need to consider the organ donation as quickly as possible. Please see below time limitations for organ donations after heart death:
■ Kidneys - can very rarely be removed up to an hour after heart death.
■ Corneas (from the eyes) - up to 24 hours after death.
■ Skin - up to 24 hours after death.
■ Bone - up to 36 hours after death.
■ Heart valves - up to 72 hours after death.
The doctor attending will be able to advise on any procedure to take place and, after the donation, the body is released back to relatives.
11