It is saddening to hear about the recent death of a 19 year-old girl who waited for a double-lung donation but in vain. In fact, many sick people have no choice but wait to die due to the general apathy towards organ donation in the city. Write a letter to the editor explaining the phenomenon and suggesting feasible measures to turn the situation around.
Dear Editor,
I am writing to express my concerns towards the low organ donation rate in the city. Recently, the death of a 19-year-old girl who waited for a double-lung donation is put under spotlight. This reveals the general apathy towards organ donation in Hong Kong. From my point of view, there are two reasons leading to the phenomenon.
First and foremost, the traditional Chinese beliefs are undoubtedly one of the causes. It is not uncommon to see that Chinese people always hold a traditional mindset towards the matter related to death. They believe that the deceased body should be kept intact so as to show respect. Therefore, it is not surprising that the organ donation rate in China including Hong Kong is so low when compared to foreign countries. Due to the traditional beliefs, people tend not to donate organs of their beloved one, even though the dead person has registered as an organ donor. According to the statistics, nearly half of the potential donors fail to give out their organs because of the objection from their families after they die. So, it is obvious that the traditional beliefs held by Chinese people leaves a great impact on the city’s low organ donation rate.
Apart from this, the lack of promotion done by the government is to blame. Although organ donation is not a new thing to our society, citizens know little about it. There are misconceptions among the old generation. For instance, they may be worried about their organs being taken out when they are still alive and some even think that doctors will not try their best to cure them once they sign up as a donor. Undoubtedly, the government should bear the responsibility to clarify the misconceptions. However, what we can see now is the lack of publicity in the community, on television or on the street. There is no way for people to know more about the actual procedures and information about organ donation, so most people are unwilling to be a donor after death. Moreover, with inadequate promotion, the public do not know the intense and urgent need for organs, resulting in low public awareness and thus the shameful organ donation rate.
According to the government statistics, there are more than 2,000 patients waiting for organ transplant in Hong Kong at any time. For the sake of saving more lives, measures should be taken to raise the organ donation rate in Hong Kong.
To turn the situation around, implementation of the opt-out donation scheme is a must. Under this scheme, all citizens will be made potential donors if they do not opt out. The scheme can definitely raise the organ donation rate in Hong Kong. The situation in Singapore is a case in point. After adopting the presumed-consent scheme, only 3% of the citizens opt out of donating organs. It is obvious that the implementation of the scheme is the immediate solution to satisfy the high demand of organs and save more lives in the short term. It is high time the government tackled the problem through legislation before more lives are lost.
Needless to say, education plays an important role as well. It is no easy task to alter people’s mindsets. However, efforts on education count. Through education in school, the concepts of organ donation can be passed to the children and youngsters at an early stage. So, they will be more willing to register as a donor if we are to keep the current donation scheme. What is more, the schoolchildren should be educated to tell their family about their decisions so as to avoid the disputes between families and medical staff once they die. In this way, the organ donation rate will surely be in a surge. Public promotion is of paramount importance. The government should put advertisements on television and public areas to emphasize the pressing need for organs. It is also important for people to know the meaningfulness of helping dying people. So, the attitude of apathy towards the organ donation can be switched overtime. In fact, education is the only way to change the traditional mindset of people.
It is hoped that the government can do more to improve the situation of low organ donation rate in our city. As one of the international cities in the world, we, as a citizen, should put our words in actions to register as a donor. Imagine how complete and meaningful our lives will be if we can use our organs to relight others’ lives after we die.
Yours faithfully,
Chris Wong
Chris Wong
Evan Yau Yee Man
6E 2015-16