Are health professionals responsible for the shortage of organs from deceased donors in Malaysia?

Abstract

Summary The rate of organ donations from deceased donors in Malaysia is among the lowest in the world. This may be because of the passivity among health professionals in approaching families of potential donors. A questionnaire‐based study was conducted amongst health professionals in two tertiary hospitals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Four hundred and sixty‐two questionnaires were completed. 93.3% of health professionals acknowledged a need for organ transplantation in Malaysia. 47.8% were willing to donate their organs (with ethnic and religious differences). Factors which may be influencing the shortage of organs from deceased donors include: nonrecognition of brainstem death (38.5%), no knowledge on how to contact the Organ Transplant Coordinator (82.3%), and never approaching families of a potential donor (63.9%). There was a general attitude of passivity in approaching families of potential donors and activating transplant teams among many of the health professionals. A misunderstanding of brainstem death and its definition hinder identification of a potential donor. Continuing medical education and highlighting the role of the Organ Transplant Coordinator, as well as increasing awareness of the public through religion and the media were identified as essential in improving the rate of organ donations from deceased donors in Malaysia.

Brain Death and Organ Donation: A Comparison of Three Influential Groups of Muslim Professionals

“…The third is that RLs can serve as a reference of knowledge for HCPs and ACAs when they seek information on the Islamic perspective of brain death. Such an argument is supported by the recent findings that show that about 84% of Malaysian Muslim HCPs stress the important role of RLs in raising the awareness of and promoting organ donation (19).…”

“…This finding indicates that the new definition of death introduced in 1968 by Harvard medical experts and approved in 1992 by Muslim officials has not been promoted properly among the three groups in this study, especially RLs who are expected to play a vital role in channelling information on organ donation to Malaysian Muslim communities (19,20).…”

“…HCPs are responsible for declaring the death of a patient, contacting an organ donation coordinator, and approaching families of prospective donors to obtain their consent to procure his/her organs (19,21). Thus, HCPs are undoubtedly a key determinant of organ donation rates.…”

“…A recent study in Malaysia showed that willingness to donate organs is lowest among Muslim HCPs (37.3%) compared with those of other religions. The study suggested that the misconception among HCPs about brain death is a significant reason impeding HCPs' abilities to identify organ donors, and, thus, undermining donation rates (19).…”

“…In Turkey, a study showed that about 50% of Muslim RLs had been consulted on organ donation issues (11). In Malaysia, 84% of Muslim health care professionals (HCPs) admit that RLs play an imperative role in educating the public on organ donation (19). Another study in Malaysia has shown that RLs are the second most preferred promoter of organ donation (20).…”