[Informing the living donor]

Withholding information about the possibility of making a living organ donation is not a neutral act: not to inform means to decide on behalf of the potential donor and the recipient, and to deny them, without any right and against their rights, their free will. It is also to declare implicitly two opinions: first, the donor and the recipient are unable to make the right decision; second, the ethic and moral convictions of the physician count for more than those of the donor and recipient. On the other hand, providing this information is not a neutral act either: to the extent that the presentation comes across as persuasive or dissuasive, the decision of the recipient and the donor will presumably be affected accordingly. Nevertheless, having access to information is a minimal condition for the donor and recipient to exercise their free will. For this reason, we should try to imagine a system in which patients receive all pertinent information about the possibility of a living organ donation, in a manner that is not coloured by partisan positions.