The Progression Of Organ Donation

A continuing problem exists in trying to close the gap between the supply and demand of procured organs in the United States. An increase in the amount of transplant operations performed has risen significantly over time. As a result, a new name is added to the national waiting list every 16 minutes (Duan, Gibbons, & Meltzer, 2000). It is estimated that about 100,000 individuals are on the national transplant waiting list at all times (Munson, 2012). Something needs to be done before these numbers get completely out of control. Despite the introduction of Gift of Life and many other educational efforts, the United

Today we are in great need of a solution to solve the problem of the shortage of human organs available for transplant. The website for Donate Life America estimates that in the United States over 100 people per day are added to the current list of over 100,000 men, women, and children that are waiting for life-saving transplants. Sadly enough, approximately 18 people a day on that list die just because they cannot outlive the wait for the organ that they so desperately need to survive. James Burdick, director of the Division of Transplantation for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services confirms, “The need for organ transplants continues to grow and this demand continues to outpace the supply of transplantable organs”. The

Since the first successful kidney transplant in 1954, the procedure has evolved from a risky experimental procedure to a relatively safe and standard procedure. Since then, doctors have been consistently raising the bar and have had success with numerous organ transplants, including hearts, lungs, livers, skin and even full facial transplants. Organs can be donated from the obvious, a deceased person, or from a cadaveric donor (someone who is declared brain dead) or from live donors. The transplantable organs from a live donor include the kidney, part of the lung and liver, and part of the eye, the cornea. The donor organs

Throughout the years of medical experiments and research, surgeons have discovered a way to transplant certain body parts onto or into someone who needs them. Hands, arms, lungs, skin, and various different limbs and organs are donated to patients on the organ donation list. Approximately twenty two people die everyday waiting for a transplant just one donation can save up to eight people and affect the lives of fifty others(Facts About Organ Donation, 2017).

In order to be eligible for an organ donation list, you must be in end-stage organ failure. This means that one of the patient’s organs has not been working for a while and it is impossible for them to live without some kind of help or transplant. For many patients, end-stage organ failure can come as a shock even if they have known for months that one of their organs was failing. With kidneys, this means the patients are put on dialysis if they are not already. Dialysis is a process that mechanically helps to do the things that the kidneys normally do. This can include filtering waste and toxins out of the body. Many organs can be transplanted from living and dead donors, including kidneys, heart, lung,

Now that organ transplantation has become a popular medical solution to end-stage organ failure, about every 10 minutes another person in need of an

Recent medical advances have greatly enhanced the ability to successfully transplant organs and tissue. Forty-five years ago the first successful kidney transplant was performed in the United States, followed twenty years later by the first heart transplant. Statistics from the United Network for Organ Sharing (ONOS) indicate that in 1998 a total of 20,961 transplants were performed in the United States. Although the number of transplants has risen sharply in recent years, the demand for organs far outweighs the supply. To date, more than 65,000 people are on the national organ transplant waiting list and about 4,000 of them will die this year- about 11 every day- while waiting for a chance to extend their life through organ donation

The sad part is that there have only been 95 donors in the California so far from January 2016 through August 2016. (donatelifeCalifornia)

Every two hours someone dies waiting for an organ transplant. 18 people will die each day waiting for an organ. One organ donor can save up to 8 lives. . THE NEED IS REAL

Attention Getter: Let’s look at the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network. They tell us that 116,567 people need a lifesaving organ transplant. Of those, 75,685 people are active the waiting list candidates. There are only 12,212 donors total donors as of 2017.

Web MD states, an organ transplant is the surgical removal of a healthy organ from one person, alive or deceased, and transplanting the organ into another person whose organ is failing. Often an organ transplant is the last effort to save and individuals life. This is why it is so important for individuals to become organ donors. Not all organs in the body are transplantable. (Organ Transplants,16) The most common organs that get transplanted are: heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, and pancreas. Tissue such as bones, corneas, and skin can also be used from organ donors.

When contemplating to donate, many different organs can be donated. These are only some of the possible organs that can be donated. A heart valve, intestines, bones, and tendons (“What Organs Can Be”). Some other organs are the kidneys, heart, lungs, liver, small bowel, and the pancreas (“Frequently Asked Questions”). And finally bone marrow, and connective tissues can be donated (“Organ Donation and Transplantation”). When a person is living and they want to donate, they can donate one kidney, one lung, a portion of their liver, a pancreas, and part of their intestine (“What Can be Donated”). When someone passes away and is a deceased donor, they can donate every thing listed above, and not just a portion of one (“What Can Be Donated”).

This article holds that under certain circumstances, people should be allowed to donate their body parts to those who are in need. Three metaphors are presented to support the thesis. The gift metaphor holds that there is a general consensus that the body is a gift hence it is morally acceptable to donate them to people in need as a gift. The resource metaphor states that the state, authorities and the medical fraternity tend to perceive the body as a resource. The commodity metaphor holds that body organs are acutely scarce a situation that creates an extremely high demand from potential donors who are equally desperate to donate them to those in need. These metaphors suggest that donation of body parts to those in need is not only morally justifiable but also legally acceptable. It is very rational to donate a body part when the donor is well-informed that the transplant means giving life to another and that no suffering result from it. Organs are so valuable to be wasted because individuals neither think about the possibility of living after a transplant of after death.

First of all, it is important to understand the history of organ donation. It is not only important to know the history, but to examine the differences between donation in the past and what it is like today. Although many forms of study are always improving, Medicine is one that is constantly and drastically changing. Throughout the past century, all practices of healthcare have changed almost completely. Through technology and brilliant minds, medicine has boomed in opportunities. When a sick individual would be sent home to die almost twenty years ago, there are now endless treatments and possibilities today. Along with the boom of

As of November 30th, 2017, 116,080 people formed the organ transplant waiting list. On average, twenty people on this list will die today. The number of people that need an organ transplant continues to grow; every ten minutes a new name is added to the list. According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, “only 3 in 1,000 people die in a way that allows for organ donation” (“Organ Donation Statistics”). In order for a deceased person to give organs, the organs must still be alive to donate. Organ transplantation improved greatly over the last century, but with an insufficient amount of organs available, it limits breakthroughs. In essence, new methods need to replace the unavailable organs. These methods drastically improve the process of organ transplantation, and in the future, the overall humans well-being.