16 January 08 - Organs for Transplant - A report by the Organ Donor Task ForceIn their recently published report entitled 'Organs For Transplant, the Organ Donor Task Force (ODTF) has made 14 recommendations to the Government, which could lead to 50 per cent increase in organ donation in the UK within five years - resulting in an additional 1,200 transplants a year. There are currently approximately 100 donor transplant coordinators employed locally in the UK to guide and support bereaved families through the donation process. The report proposes a radical shift from existing arrangements, recommending the recruitment of around 100 extra donor transplant coordinators. These extra front line staff and existing coordinators would be employed centrally by NHS Blood and Transplant rather than individual Trusts, which would mean an end to varied employment, and training practices across the country. Together with other measures to improve donor coordination services this could result in a 10% increase in the consent rate for donation (currently at 60%). In addition, a strengthened network of dedicated organ retrieval teams would also be established and be available 24 hours a day, working closely with the critical care teams in hospital to retrieve safe high quality organs for transplant across the UK. The review did not tackle the issue of "presumed consent" for which Gordon Brown has recently voiced his support - this is being considered by a separate review. To learn more about the Organ Donor Task Force click here and to download a copy of the report click here!
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