Consent for organ donation: a case study in the light of bioethics

Fewer donations are being made in Brazil to meet the growing organ demand. Organ donation in Brazil reached an average of 53% consent. However, hospitals in Paraná have reached a level of 94.2%. What reasons could be given for these levels? Accordingly, this study aimed to understand the causes involved in decision-making to donate organs. The methodology used was qualitative based on a case study. Data was collected at a hospital in Toledo, a city in Paraná, through documentary research and semi-structured interviews with two distinct groups: professionals responsible for the family approach to donation and five families consenting to donation. The search for data was restricted to the period between 2015 and 2023. Data analysis used Bardin's content analysis. The results were organized into four categories in the first group, and two categories in the second group, suggesting that aspects linked to bioethical references present in the interview, such as beneficence and autonomy, contribute to the emergence of high rates of family consent for organ donation in the hospital studied. It is recommended for future research to test successful interview models to reverse the current organ donation rates in Brazil.