Number of organ donors on rise in Scotland

A RECORD number of Scots received a life-changing organ transplant last year, new figures have revealed.

The year 2016-17 also saw the highest ever number of cases where peoples’ organs were donated after their death.

A total of 133 people who died in Scottish hospitals became organ donors, up from 99 the previous year, according to figures from NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). That meant that 348 people who were waiting for a transplant were able to have the surgery they needed. A further 82 people received a new kidney from a living donor in 2016-17.

Public Health Minister Aileen Campbell said the increase in donations was “fantastic news” which “shows the real progress we’re making in organ donation”.

The number of people who are waiting for a transplant has fallen to the lowest ever recorded, with almost 2.4 million people in Scotland now on the NHS Organ Donor Register – approximately 45 per cent of the population. But despite this Ms Campbell said more needed to be done to ensure as many people as possible can benefit from transplant surgery.

The Scottish Government has just carried out a consultation about moving to a “soft optout” system of donation – where a person’s organs could be taken for transplantation after death unless they had specified this should not happen.

Ms Campbell said: “An increase in deceased donor numbers of 34 per cent is not only really positive news for people waiting for a transplant, it puts us ahead of our target in progressing to reach 26 deceased donors per million of population by 2020.”