Improving and Delivering Medical Education about Organ Donation and Transplantation to Medical Students Could Play a Fundamental Role in Organ Donation Expansion: Its Time to Get the Basics Right.
Transplant Surgery, St Georges University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom.
Meeting: 2018 American Transplant Congress
Abstract number: A387
Keywords: Donation
Session Information
Session Name: Poster Session A: Quality Assurance Process Improvement
Session Type: Poster Session
Date: Saturday, June 2, 2018
Session Time: 5:30pm-7:30pm
Presentation Time: 5:30pm-7:30pm
Location: Hall 4EF
Background: Education and knowledge about organ donation and transplantation are the most important tools required by all doctors to become ambassador for it irrespective of their speciality. This means that we need to integrate the knowledge of donation and transplantation into the medical school syllabus so that future doctors can play a proactive role in expanding donation.
Methods: To gauge the changes in knowledge and attitude of organ donation and transplantation among medical students of St Georges University of London we conducted two surveys five years apart and analysed the outcomes. The outcome data was analysed using SPSS software package.
Results:
| Survey 2012 (n=241) | Survey 2017 (n=293) | Significance | |
| Awareness of living organ donation before medical school | 231 | 219 | < 0.0001 |
| Awareness of deceased organ donation before medical school | 200 | 264 | 0.0174 |
| Awareness of the benefits of organ donation | 199 | 278 | < 0.0001 |
| Supporting living organ donation | 181 | 255 | 0.0004 |
| Supporting deceased organ donation | 194 | 269 | 0.0001 |
| Self-consideration for living donation | 155 | 158 | 0.0197 |
| Self-consideration for DBD donation | 139 | 208 | 0.0017 |
| Self-consideration for DCD donation | 159 | 202 | 0.4613 |
| Registered as organ donor | 155 | 167 | 0.1005 |
| Require more information and knowledge about organ donation and transplant | 177 | 158 | < 0.0001 |
| Awareness of organ transplantation | 241 | 289 | 0.1199 |
| If required will receive/consider receiving an organ from a living donor | 179 | 271 | < 0.0001 |
| If required will receive/consider receiving an organ from a living donor | 160 | 258 | < 0.0001 |
Awareness and support about organ donation have significantly increased [<0.00001] however it has not translated in increase in organ donor registrations [ 0.1005].
Conclusion: There is still a lack of clarity about various issues related to organ donation and transplantation. Targeting the quantity and quality of education regarding this could result in future clinicians that are more capable and appropriately informed to advocate about organ donation and transplantation.
CITATION INFORMATION: Ghazanfar A., Vyra E. Improving and Delivering Medical Education about Organ Donation and Transplantation to Medical Students Could Play a Fundamental Role in Organ Donation Expansion: Its Time to Get the Basics Right. Am J Transplant. 2017;17 (suppl 3).
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Ghazanfar A, Vyra E. Improving and Delivering Medical Education about Organ Donation and Transplantation to Medical Students Could Play a Fundamental Role in Organ Donation Expansion: Its Time to Get the Basics Right. [abstract]. https://atcmeetingabstracts.com/abstract/improving-and-delivering-medical-education-about-organ-donation-and-transplantation-to-medical-students-could-play-a-fundamental-role-in-organ-donation-expansion-its-time-to-get-the-basics-right/. Accessed May 11, 2025.« Back to 2018 American Transplant Congress