After an ecumenical thanksgiving service, the central event of the DSO (German Foundation for Organ Transplantation) was opened on Saturday morning in Munich with a welcoming address from the Federal Minister of Health, Hermann Gröhe. The stage program and the pavilions of the associations and non-profit medical associations offered the opportunity to find out about organ donation and for personal discussions. Numerous actions invited to participate and experience.
In Munich, it also becomes clear what the decision to donate an organ can actually mean. For the “Gift Years of Life” campaign, organ recipients gather on the stage – each with a sign showing the individual number of years they have been given. 882 additional years of life came together this year in Munich.
Organ and tissue donation decisions
On June 1, 2016, on the occasion of organ donation day, the Federal Center for Health Education (BZgA) published the first results of the nationwide representative survey “Attitude, knowledge and behavior of the general population regarding organ and tissue donation in Germany 2016”.
Federal Health Minister Hermann Gröhe: “I’m often asked if I have an organ donor card myself. I have one and always carry it with me with great conviction. It’s good that 81 percent of all people in Germany are open to organ and tissue donation. However, only a third have actually have an organ donor card for the population. I wish that even more people in Germany would make a conscious decision and record it in an organ donor card. Because this decision can save lives.”
The overwhelmingly positive attitude towards organ and tissue donation has been consistently high since 2010 and is 81 percent this year (2010: 79 percent). 32 percent of those surveyed have an organ donor card. In addition, the living will plays a role in documenting the decision to donate organs and tissue: 9 percent of all respondents have recorded this in writing in a living will, sometimes in addition to an organ donor card.
Those who make the decision usually agree to organ and tissue donation after death (74 percent). When asked about their motives, 77 percent stated that they wanted to help other people.
A comprehensive range of information on the subject of organ and tissue donation can be found on the BZgA website at www.organspende-info.de. In addition, the information campaign by the Federal Ministry of Health and the BZgA will be continued in autumn 2016 under the motto “Organ donation – the decision counts”.