Improving organ donation rates and transplantation in Australia

Broader acceptance of organs from circulatory death donors would increase donor rates significantly

The initiative funded by the Federal Government in 2009 to improve both the identification of potential deceased organ donors and family consent rates has dramatically changed the prospects for Australians with end-stage organ failure. The subsequent establishment of a coordinated DonateLife network, with more than 150 medical and nursing staff charged with identifying potential organ donors, has led to the donation rate increasing over the past 5 years from 11.4 to 20.9 donors per million population (pmp) in 2016. Record numbers of organ transplants and reduced waiting times for transplantation have resulted.1,2