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Education on Organ Donation and Transplantation in Elementary and High Schools: Formulation of a New Proposal

2010; Wolters Kluwer; Volume: 89; Issue: 9 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1097/tp.0b013e3181d2fe98

1534-6080

F Cantarovich, Marcelo Cantarovich, Elizabeth Falco, Rubén Óscar Revello, Christophe Legendre, Andrea Herrera‐Gayol,

Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues

Organ shortage is a severe worldwide health problem. Reluctance to organ donation is one of its main reasons, and it is frequently based on prejudices, religious uncertainties, and false or lack of information (1, 2). The strategies and policies currently used or considered to reduce the problem of organ shortage include the following: to increase living related or unrelated donation, to increase the use of expanded criteria donors and donors after cardiocirculatory death, to reduce economic disincentives, to develop policies regarding the options to donate, and to develop publicity campaigns promoting organ donation, mainly based on the concept that organ donation is a gift of life (3, 4). Unfortunately, the shortage of donors persists despite all these efforts. Surveys performed in high schools from different countries have shown that the main issues are the lack of information on organ donation and transplantation, the discomfort about donating their organs or those of their family members, and the fear of death (5, 6). The general population should be aware that there is an urgent need of organs for transplantation because of an increased incidence of organ failure and patient death on the waiting lists (7). The published literature in the area of education on organ donation and transplantation has included mostly high school students (5, 8). There are only two reports on education of elementary school children (9, 10). The studies arrived to similar conclusions about the positive changes observed in the students after the presentations and the need to include accurate information about organ donation and transplantation in school curriculum. We evaluated the feasibility of presentations on organ donation and transplantation addressed to elementary and high school students from Canada and Argentina. The aims were to assess their knowledge and perception about organ donation and transplantation, to increase their awareness about those topics including new concepts, and to encourage discussions with their families and friends. These pilot presentations were aimed at assessing their potential future use as the basis for an educational program. New concepts were discussed: “During life, we might become organ recipients rather than organ donors”; “The dead body is a source of health”; and “Organ donation means to share life.” The presentations were given in one school in Canada and one in Argentina. A questionnaire was completed by 316 students. Seventy-one percent of preadolescents from Argentina had information about organ transplantation versus 45% in Canada (P=0.02). Adolescents were more informed versus preadolescents (Argentina 90% vs. 71%, P=0.01; Canada 80% vs. 45%, P=0.008). Preadolescents enjoyed the presentation (90% in Argentina and 89% in Canada). Adolescents from argentina enjoyed less versus Canadians (74% vs. 89%, P=0.007), and versus Argentinean preadolescents (74% vs. 90%, P=0.007). Preadolescents and adolescents would discuss the topics with parents, friends, or both (Argentina 90% and 81%, Canada 75% and 80%, respectively). See Supplemental Figures 1 to 3 (Supplemental Digital Content 1,https://links.lww.com/TP/A173). Comments from preadolescents and adolescents are shown in Supplemental Tables 1 and 2 (see Supplemental Digital Content 1,https://links.lww.com/TP/A173). The most important finding of this pilot project was the great interest that young students showed regarding organ donation and transplantation in two different countries. In our previous experience about education on organ donation and transplantation in schools (9), we observed that 10-year-old children understood basic concepts about organ donation and transplantation. Moreover, a survey performed among transplant physicians and surgeons (reviewers of the 2002 Congress of The Transplantation Society) suggested that education on organ donation and transplantation could be initiated in 10-year-old students (4). The main difference between this report and previous education strategies in organ donation and transplantation is based on the concept of new messages. We commented that the deceased human body is a source of life, that during life everyone has a higher chance to become a potential organ recipient rather than an organ donor, and that organ donation is more than a gift, it is to share life. Differences observed among students from Canada and Argentina, and between preadolescents and adolescents, suggest the importance to adapt future educational programs to age and to cultural characteristics of different societies. In conclusion, this pilot study suggests that students are open to learn about organ donation and transplantation, to accept new concepts, and to discuss these topics with their family and friends. Education programs on organ donation and transplantation could be initiated in elementary schools targeting preadolescents (10 years and older) and should be adapted to age and sociocultural background. Educational programs should be incorporated into school curricula. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors thank Francis Delmonico, M.D., for his critical review of the article. Félix Cantarovich1 Marcelo Cantarovich2 Elizabeth Falco3 Rubén Revello4 Christophe Legendre1 Andrea Herrera-Gayol5 1Service de Transplantation Adultes Hôpital Necker Université Paris Descartes Paris, France 2Department of Medicine Multi-Organ Transplant Program McGill University Health Center Montreal, QC, Canada 3The Study School Westmount, QC, Canada 4Catholic University Buenos Aires, Argentina 5ScienceMedAdvice Westmount, QC, Canada