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Cornea donation: evaluation of a training session to obtain consent by telephone
A Geissler1, P R Gerbeaux, C Maitrejean
1Service des Urgences, Assistance publique hopitaux de Marseille, Marseille, France. pgerbeaux@ap-hm.fr
Background:
Obtaining consent from relatives is essential for cornea donation. When a face-to-face interview is not possible, telephone contact is used to obtain donation consent. We tried to evaluate the role of experience on the acceptance rate using this method.
Methods:
This was a prospective study conducted over a 22-month period. Two nonmedical coordinators were evaluated. Telephone contact was conducted using a standardized procedure. We recorded for each coordinator the number of telephone contacts and the acceptance rate.
Results:
Among 455 families contacted, the mean acceptance rate was 60%. Initial acceptance rate was below 30% for both coordinators, showing dramatic improvement with experience (acceptance rate >70% after 100 contacts).
Conclusions:
Telephone contact is an efficient method to obtain cornea donation consent. However, as with other new methods, a training period is necessary to increase effectiveness.
