Nurse Intervention: Attitudes and Knowledge About Organ Donation and Transplantation in Adolescents

The problems involved in obtaining authorization in favor of organ donation have led us to evaluate the level of knowledge and attitudes of a group of Spanish adolescents (14-16 years) regarding organ donation, transplantation, and brain death. The evaluation was carried out before and after a health education intervention by nursing personnel.

Experimental, prospective and quantitative study. The educational intervention was carried out at Las Salinas high school (Laguna de Duero, Spain). We collected 86 preworkshop questionnaires and 88 post-workshop questionnaires.

The composition of the groups did not differ significantly in sex (P = .653), age (P = .266), or in the desire to be a donor (P = .099). We found significant postworkshop improvements in knowledge about brain death (P < .001) and which organs can be donated (P < .001), as well as in the total score (18.29 ± 2.45 before vs 21.47 ± 2.70 after) (P < .001). We discovered a vast lack of knowledge about the organs that cannot be transplanted, which included the penis (38.4%), uterus (31.4%), prostate (41.9%), or bladder (37.2%); these beliefs decreased significantly after the intervention (P < .01). The increase in knowledge of the organs that can be donated, including eye (P = .024), lung (P = .025), stomach (P < .001), intestine (P = .001), and skin (P < .001), was also significant.

The good results reflected the importance of conducting educational programs taught by health personnel on donation and organ transplantation in adolescents.