Yesterday I was reading the Evening Standard on my way home and the front page had pictures of Abbey Cape, who was given a donor heart at the 11th hour.

The article went on to point out the shortage of donor organs and explained that the significant drop in road fatalaties was partly to blame for this shortage.

I guess it just struck me that what you gain on the one hand you lose on the other.

And then I went on to thinking that maybe the law should state that you were a donor unless you carried a card to say you were not.

I would certainly wish to donor, and God forbid anything happened to any of my family would take some comfort in the fact that their deaths weren't in vain.

Now I must go and cheer myself up.

Dave

 

It does annoy me that the "Speed Kills" brigade still trot out the statistics of road deaths each year, always saying how "unacceptably high" they are. You are still more likely to die in the home than in a car. Also, roads death fall (or stay static) every year, despite increases in the number of cars and journeys.

Every road death is tragic and ultimately avoidable. But, as long as humans are at the wheel, people will continue to make mistakes and have fatal accidents. What is an acceptable number of deaths anyway? Zero is unachievable, so what is the number that will be "acceptable".

I also agree that people should automatically be a donor unless you specifically register that you don't want to be one. A large percentage of people killed are not registered donors and often the dead persons family - in the immediate aftermath of a fatal accident - are not in the best frame of mind to make a decision about their loved one being used as a donor. It is tragic that more than enough people are probably killed to satisfy the donor demand but, for whatever reason, their organs etc are not used to save others.

[Edited by Jerome - 4/30/2002 3:31:01 PM]

 

Maybe we should turn this into a "thats amazing" type thread.

Facts like "you are more likely to die at home" scare the crap out of me, and then I start thinking about other statistics that I just can not fathom such as:

1. The Gov't gets £1000 per SECOND out of fuel tax...PER SECOND!!
2. The Post Office is losing £1.5m a DAY!!!

How can these things happen - how do you lose £1.5m a day.

And then onto deaths - it is amazing to read how many people die each day on the road, in the home, at work etc etc.

Anyway, not morbid or fedup, just find facts amazing.

DW

 

Biggest problem with organ donation is that even if you carry a card and are on the organ donor register (I am, are you?) your relatives can still say no.

Personally I think I should be able to decide what happens to my organs after death and I have told my next of kin!

I was once told by a transplant co-ordinator that countries with an opt out policy on organ donation actually have about the same percentage of donations as countries with opt in, like us.

 

www.nhsorgandonor.net

 

DW,

i agree with the "stats" stuff. It is always numbers and not actions that get promoted - for example we have recently been told that the "stop a train crashing system" (whatever it is currently called) is now going to cost SIX POINT EIGHT BILLION POUNDS!!!! Does anyone know what this will cost per miles (or even foot) of track ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT IS ALREADY IN PLACE???

Numbers are all hype these days [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

mb

p.s. I DISAGREE with an opt-out donor card, but fully support an opt-in one.

 

Bit of a tangent but in the same way that road deaths fund donor replacement, to a certain extent could the NHS actually exist without cigarette and petrol taxation monies - no way!!

DP.

 

Anyone see Fifth Gear on CH5?

4 people die on a train at Hatfield and Billions will be spent to make them safer.

Thousands die on the roads and no extra money is spent on dangerous roads or bypasses. A few cost effective solutions were shown that would save hundreds of lives.

Why not just fine the train drivers for going through red lghts or do them for speeding. Seems the answer for the motorist.

Lee

 

lol@Logiclee

Next we will see Gatso's being put up at major railway accident spots

DW

 

Like Doc says, an opt-in system wouldn't necessarily increase the amount of organs available for donation as there are various criteria that must be met surrounding the death before the body is considered for donation.

Along the fact line, isn't it frightening to think that a huge percentage of organ donors are young men involved in motorcycle accidents. How many of you have a bike for the weekend? My wife won't allow me one for this very reason

I was the recipient of a donor heart at the ripe old age of 25. Same story as Abbey Cape, dilated cardiomyopathy. I have been in touch with the family of the donor and they do take some comfort in the fact that the death of their son wasn't in vain (i now have a daughter i wouldn't have had), but it's still disturbing to think that someone had to die in order for me to live.

 

Rather sick I know but in the medical community motorcyclists are known as "donors"