The Organ and Tissue Authority (OTA) has announced that the number of new registrations agreeing to donate organs has reached record levels in recent times with an 87 per cent growth year-on-year as Australians sign up to be organ donors.
Celebrating the growth, Minister responsible for OTA, Dr David Gillespie said new data showed a substantial increase in new registrations on the Australian Organ Donor Register (AODR).
Dr Gillespie said the OTA’s 2021 Australian Donation and Transplantation Activity Report confirmed that, despite a further drop in donation and transplant rates last year, public support for donation had increased.
“We saw 350,000 more Aussies getting behind organ and tissue donation in 2021, registering to be donors at a rate never seen before,” he said.
“It’s heart-warming to see that, even during the toughest of times, Australians understand the importance of donation and have joined the seven million other Australians on the AODR,” he said.
“Importantly, 1,174 Australian lives were saved in 2021 through an organ transplant, due to the generosity of 421 deceased organ donors and their families.”
Dr Gillespie said while record-breaking new registrations were a step in the right direction, the strain that COVID-19 had put on the healthcare system continued to be felt.
The Minister said there was a nine per cent decrease in the number of organ donors and a seven per cent decrease in the number of people who received a transplant in 2021, compared to 2020.
“I would like to acknowledge all donors and express heartfelt thanks to families who say ‘yes’ to organ donation and give the gift of life to others,” he said.
“There are around 1,850 Australians who are waitlisted for an organ transplant and an additional 13,000 people on dialysis – some who may need a kidney transplant one day.
“The best chance we have to address the challenge of the longer waitlist is to have more Australians say ‘yes’ to donation – both yes to registering and yes in the hospital if there is the opportunity to donate,” Dr Gillespie said.
The Authority’s 26-page Report can be accessed at this PS News link.
