J Korean Soc Transplant.  2001 Jun;15(1):51-57.

Study on Physician's Perceptions and Attitudes on Organ Donation in Brain Dead Donors

• Ha HS
• Hong JJ
• Kim SC
• Lee SG
• Song MG
• Han DJ

Abstract

PURPOSE: The demand for suitable organs in the world greatly outweighs the supply of transplantable organs. Perceptions and attitudes of the attending physician to brain death are pivotal for the organ donation process in brain dead donors. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the perceptions and attitudes of the attending physician on brain death and organ donation in order to promote the organ donation from brain dead donors in Korea.
METHODS
Questionnaires were collected from 194 (17.9%) among 1,018 physicians and were analyzed by descriptive statistics.
RESULTS
97.5% (189/194) of respondents have positive attitudes toward organ donation. Although 97.9% (190/194) have experienced donor management, the referral rate was no more than half (96/194, 49.5%). The main barriers against organ donation were lack of knowledge on organ donation and transplantation (60/129, 46.5%), cultural background (27/120, 20.9%) and complexity in the organ donation process (12/129, 9.3%).
CONCLUSION
Promotion of organ procurement organization and well trained-education programs are crucial to help attending physicians to understand the organ donation process, and eventually to increase the rate of organ donations in brain dead donors.

Keyword

Organ donation; Transplantation; Brain death; Perception; Attitude

MeSH Terms

Brain Death*
Brain*
Humans
Korea
Surveys and Questionnaires
Referral and Consultation
Surveys and Questionnaires
Tissue and Organ Procurement*
Tissue Donors*
Transplantation