Development of a questionnaire to assess attitudes and beliefs toward organ donation among Asians

In the United Kingdom, people from the Indian subcontinent have a higher incidence of kidney failure, are less likely to receive a kidney transplant, and have a higher mortality rate from renal disease. In addition, Asians are reluctant donors; white people make up 95% of the donor pool. We developed a questionnaire to determine the knowledge and attitudes toward organ donation in the Asian communities. The setting was a public forum; the aims were (1) to study the attitudes of Asians toward organ donation, (2) to validate our questionnaire, and (3) to initiate a campaign of increasing awareness of organ donation and transplantation in the Asian community in the greater Glasgow area. Our survey suggested that Asians have an awareness of organ donation and transplantation, and they would donate an organ to a family member; however, they did not carry a donor card. Respondents unanimously agreed that lobbying by religious leaders was the best means to promote awareness.