Organ donation by brain dead patients increasing

The number of people declared brain dead whose organs were donated increased 37.3 percent to 368 last year from 2010, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare Thursday.

A ministry official attributed the rise to an improved reporting system.

The system has encouraged medical institutions to notify the Organ Obtaining Institution when a patient is declared brain dead.

From June 2011 to May 2012, 1,030 such cases were reported.

In the past, organ donation rates following brain death had been stagnant, with 251 cases in 2008, 261 in 2009 and 268 in 2010. However in 2011, the number showed a significant jump.

The ministry also evaluated that the introduction of the Organ Obtaining Institution has allowed the process to become more convenient for the donor’s family. Instead of the donor having to be moved to another hospital, the process takes place at the same hospital the patient was admitted.

“It is most important that a social atmosphere exists in which the public and the medical sector accept organ donation,” said a ministry official. “We will examine methods to reform policies so that the organ donation system and acceptance of it can take a further step forward.” <The Korea Times/Kim Bo-eun>

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