Opt-out donor register will make a world of difference

News that organ donation is set to become an opt-out rather than opt-in system in England is to be welcomed. It’s long overdue, but this radical change in policy will save about 500 patients a year and allay the anguish of the 6,500 languishing on waiting lists. Meanwhile, my medical friends say that asking a distraught family to consider organ donation is the task they dread most because the answer is literally a matter of life and death.

When a person dies suddenly, even the most gentle approach can trigger anger. Devastated relatives can refuse simply because they want to exert control in a period of emotional chaos.

Time can make all the difference. In 2015, a newborn girl became Britain’s youngest organ donor. Hope Lee, who was one of twins, lived for just 74 minutes. Although her brother Josh was healthy, Hope was diagnosed utero with anencephaly, a catastrophic condition that prevents the brain and skull developing properly.

Her parents, Emma and Drew, decided against a termination. They wanted their daughter to be born, to be held and loved before she died in their arms. They also requested that her kidneys – the size of two hazelnuts – be donated. They were transplanted into a 26-year-old woman, grew very quickly and transformed her life.

In January of this year the couple received a letter from the woman.

“I wanted you to know the difference you have made to my family and me and how much we appreciate your kindness at what must have been a difficult time for you,” she wrote. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart.” When such stories hit the headlines there is a spike in the number of people registering as donors, but it’s never enough.

Presumed consent will make the world of difference. There’s bound to be a certain adjustment period, but this is a crucial cultural shift. A few years from now, we will look back and wonder how we ever thought it was fair or humane to expect nurses and doctors to approach the grieving and ask for their loved one’s organs.