Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There are 600 people in Ireland on a waiting list for organ donation. In the past, the number of organ donations in Ireland has been relatively low compared to other countries. In 2020, there were a total of 106 organ donors in Ireland, resulting in 318 transplants. The number of organ donors has been increasing in recent years, but the country still has the lowest rate of organ donation compared to other countries.

Education is key to success. The person dying must be well enough and sick enough to accept the organ. Today, this cannot be just about bringing a Bill through the Dáil. There needs to be back up and supports for the person receiving an organ. They need to be mentally well to accept the organ. For the donors and the donor's families, there is also a need to have proper personnel in place at the time of donation. Families whose loved ones are donating the organs can see the work of the undertaker, the work of the hospital staff, and the work of the personnel involved. This work is hugely sensitive at a time when people are grieving. On the other side, it is a time when they are giving life to people who are very sick. To me it is an act of kindness. We can be thankful to the people who donate their organs. Again, I go back to education as the key. We must ensure that the proper system is in place to support the family whose member is receiving the organ, and also to support the families grieving the person who gives the organs. The important role played by our undertakers in our counties is huge with the amount of support they give to the people at that time of need.

I hope that in the case of the opt in and the opt out, the decision is for people themselves, and that the option is there. I keep coming back to the education and the supports that need to be put in place to make sure that anyone willing to give the organs will receive the supports. In recent times we have seen what has been happening in Limerick and in other accident and emergency departments around the country. I would like to think, in the case of a transplant operation, that no operation would be postponed based on not having the proper medical staff available due to another emergency, that all of the proper personnel would be in place and that there was an emergency case, it would not interfere with any other procedures taking place in a hospital. I know of some people who went for organ donation, had been in care and prepped before the operation, only to be told when the time came - not only once but twice in some cases - that the operation would not go ahead due to complications or problems with staffing. We need to make sure that supports are put in place for the people who are giving their organs and for the family of the person who is donating.

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