Potential organ donor audit in Ireland

Area of Science:

• Medical Auditing
• Transplant Services
• Intensive Care Medicine

Background:

• Increasing global demand for organs presents a significant challenge for transplant services worldwide.
• Effective organ donation requires rigorous auditing of the donation process to ensure efficiency and identify areas for improvement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a national audit of potential organ donors within hospitals possessing Intensive Care Units (ICUs).
• To evaluate the effectiveness of the organ donation pathway from patient identification to organ procurement.

Main Methods:

• A national audit was performed across 36 hospitals with ICUs.
• Questionnaires were collected for all 2073 patients who died in these units between September 1, 2007, and August 31, 2008.
• Data analysis focused on the identification of potential organ donors, Brain Stem Testing (BST), Brain Stem Dead (BSD) diagnoses, consent rates, and actual organ donation outcomes.

Main Results:

• Out of 2073 deaths, 200 patients (10%) were considered for Brain Stem Testing (BST).
• 158 patients (79%) were diagnosed as Brain Stem Dead (BSD), with 138 (87%) becoming potential donors.
• Consent for organ donation was obtained from 92 (69%) next of kin, resulting in 90 (65%) actual organ donors. No significant number of potential donors were missed.

Conclusions:

• The audit indicated that a substantial number of potential organ donors were not being missed within the audited ICUs.
• Recommendations include optimizing Brain Stem Testing (BST) completion and support, timely referral of Brain Stem Dead (BSD) patients to Organ Procurement Services, and enhancing hospital coordination and education campaigns.