Organ Donation

1868 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Organ donation ethical and moral issues

Topic: Should donors or their families be compensated for organ donation? How should people be selected to receive donor organs?

Major Points: Organ donation myths, Recipient Selection, Legislation and Policy, Current Trend, Let’s Pay Organ Donors.
Thesis: While driving on the highway recently, I saw a bumper sticker which read: “Please Don't Take Your Organs to Heaven, Heaven Knows That We Need Them Here” Approximately 7,000 Americans die annually while awaiting an organ transplant. In other countries of the world thousands more whose lives could be extended or transformed through transplants lost their lives because of unavailable organs. The waiting list is ever growing and the list of those willing to donate seems to be shrinking. This can be attributed to lack of motivation and knowledge among the prospective donors. According to a research done by the World Health Organization (WHO) on Kidney transplant, only one in ten people in need of a new kidney, manages to get one. The gap between supply and demand for organs has created a black market for body parts which has led to abuse of human life especially in third world countries. This high demand has led people to scour the globe to procure the organs they or their loved ones need and unscrupulous intermediaries offer help. There is a need to compensate those who are willing donate if this wide gap has to be bridged.
Body Point 1: Organ donation myths Th...

... middle of paper ...

... would in the contrary; put it into the hands of black marker dealers just the way outlawing drugs didn’t make them go away but rather put all the power into the hands of drug cartels, and we all know how well that’s turned out. By legalizing organ sales, we can guarantee that the transaction is voluntary, sanitary, and safe. No such promises can be made if we kept it outlawed. I have always wondered why we’re allowed to receive compensation for donating our hair, blood, sperm and eggs. Why should kidneys or bone marrow or other organs fall into a special class that prohibits market exchanges yet they are equally body parts? Banning compensation for these organs is a sure death sentence for thousands of Americans who are in desperate need of these organs and a waste of money for the government in paying for the upkeep of these patients as they undergo the long wait.

Show More
Related

  • Anthony Gregory Analysis

    924 Words  | 2 Pages

    Yearly, thousands die from not receiving the organs needed to help save their lives; Anthony Gregory raises the question to why organ sales are deemed illegal in his piece “Why legalizing organ sales would help to save lives, end violence”, which was published in The Atlantic in November of 2011. Anthony Gregory has written hundreds of articles for magazines and newspapers, amongst the hundreds of articles is his piece on the selling of organs. Gregory states “Donors of blood, semen, and eggs, and volunteers for medical trials, are often compensated. Why not apply the same principle to organs? (p 451, para 2)”. The preceding quote allows and proposes readers to ponder on the thought of there being an organ

    Read More

  • Annotated Bibliography On The Problem Of Organ Shortages

    1629 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...ne article, The Troubling Shortage Of Organ Donors In The U.S., makes it well known that there is a huge shortage of organ donors throughout the united states. It emphasizes that the need for kidneys is bigger than the need for other organs. The number of people needed a kidney is triple the amount of the people that are receiving the kidneys. The article states, “Now the United Network for Organ Sharing is considering changing the rules for kidneys to be more like hearts, matching younger donors with younger recipients and also giving priority to the healthier patients” (Siegel). This view point will help defend my argument on seeing that we need to find a way to solve organ shortages throughout the united states. I argue that everyone should be a priority patient, and they should find a way to solve organ shortages, that way everyone would be a priority patient.

    Read More

  • The Kidney Shortage Problem

    1392 Words  | 3 Pages

    Wolfe, R., Merion, R., Roys, E., & Port, F. (2009). Trends in Organ Donation and Transplantation in the United States, 1998-2007. American Journal of Transplantation , 9, 869-878.

    Read More

  • Organ Donation: The Real Life Superheroes

    525 Words  | 2 Pages

    Do you want to be a superhero in someones life then you should consider being an organ donor. Why would I want to be an organ donor you may ask? Well for one after you die your organs could be used to help someone else live. Wouldn't that be cool, you could help people after you have passed on. You can be a organ donor at any age. You can also be a organ donor while you are still alive. The need is constantly growing for organ donors and it is very simple to be an organ donor when you die. Signing up for organ donation will save more lives. Becoming an organ donor is simple and can save the lives of many individuals needing your help. You have the power to save.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Organ Donation

    1747 Words  | 4 Pages

    However, it’s extremely important because organs from cadavers are often discarded if the family fails to make arrangements for them to be donated prior to the deceased being removed from life support. These situations significantly influence the fact that many Americans continually die every single day from not receiving a needed organ transplant. In fact, Sigrid Fry-Revere in her interview explains that 20 to 30 people die every day”. So exactly how should the American government address the organ donation shortage? The answer is quite simple: by compensating those who are willing to put the value of human life above all else. Compensation for organ donation is essential if the American Government wishes to increase the number of donors and significantly decrease the amount of Americans who are presently awaiting an organ transplant. Allowing compensation for organ donation will provide Americans with a stronger sense of protection, a clear expectation of moral behavior, and a stronger sense of American

    Read More

  • Summary Of Organ Sales Will Save Lives By Joanna Mackay

    323 Words  | 1 Pages

    “Organ Sales Will Save Lives” by Joanna MacKay be an essay that started with a scenario that there are people who died just to buy a kidney, also, thousands of people are dying to sell a kidney. The author stood on her point that governments should therefore stop banning the sale of human organs, she further suggests that it should be regulated. She clearly points that life should be saved and not wasted. Dialysis in no way could possibly heal or make the patient well. Aside from its harshness and being expensive, it could also add stress to the patient. Kidney transplant procedure is the safest way to give hope to this hopelessness. By the improved and reliable machines, transplants can be safe—keeping away from complications. Regulating

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Organ Donation

    715 Words  | 2 Pages

    Removing an organ from a healthy human-being, to be placed in another person, seems to violate this basic value. However, maximizing benefits while minimizing potential harms seems to be the logical course to take when concerning human life. Taking an organ from a seemingly normal person, upon their consent, to be given to an individual in need of a vital organ, to save their life, is a modern, medical miracle. Organ donors are able to live ordinary lives, proceeding their operation, while lucky patients receive the treatment they need to survive. These amazing, life-changing transplants are often neglected because public concern does not focus on organ donation issues. Within the United States, many people are not registered as organ donors, or even know that there is a major shortage of these essential organs. The United States need to take an initiative that will allow for an idealistic, organ donation

    Read More

  • Organ Donation Cause And Effect Essay

    1283 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is clear that a large demand for organs exists. People in need of organ donations are transferred to an orderly list. Ordinarily, U.S. institutions have an unprofitable system which provides organs through a list of individuals with the highest needs; however, these organs may never come. A list is

    Read More

  • Organ Trade Essay

    797 Words  | 2 Pages

    For starters I would like to high light that I do not agree with organ trade, I absolutely detest it. To save a life by giving an organ is a good thing but selling it develops problems. Selling organs is very immoral because it allows our vital organs to be sold like a piece of crap. I do not see how legalization is okay, because no one should want to have their body part(s) sold on the market as though they are an item. However, I do support giving organs for great causes and maybe, giving it to science. Those are fairly acceptable things and they can become beneficial to science and people in need. In recent studies I found that “People who sell their kidneys receive a small amount for their donation, after all the majority goes to whomever is the broker i...

    Read More

  • Organ Transplants Persuasive Essay

    1186 Words  | 3 Pages

    There has to be a change. The best way to stop this and increase the supply of organs available is to create a system in which the donors are provided with some type of payment. In a live debate by NPR over the placement of this system, “those who favored buying and selling organs went from 44 percent to 60 percent. But those opposed inched up only 4 points, from 27 to 31 percent” (npr.com). Therefore, being able to save thousands of lives through the legalization of organ marketing overshadows the risks that come with it.

    Read More

  • Pros And Cons Of Organ Transplants

    890 Words  | 2 Pages

    This market preys on poor and impoverished areas and people, whereas if we allowed an organ market, there would be no need for buyers to turn to illegal activities. Also, not only would the amount of transplants go up in great numbers, but this would not halt donation either. A large part of donations, accounting for almost 31% of all kidneys transplanted, came from a relative or friend of a person in need (Harris**). By allowing a market, this brings more hope to someone who cannot find an immediate kidney match because friends or relatives are not feasible. From the influx of new kidneys available for transplant, this could also bring in better kidneys that had not been available before. According to Satel, “benefits will almost certainly increase the donor pool, as they have in other domains”, which is exactly what we as humans need (Satel 4). A market for organs brings about less death because it allows more options for those in

    Read More

  • Organ Donation Shortage

    2036 Words  | 5 Pages

    One of the most important and prevalent issues in healthcare discussed nowadays is the concern of the organ donation shortage. As the topic of organ donation shortages continues to be a growing problem, the government and many hospitals are also increasingly trying to find ways to improve the number of organ donations. In the United States alone, at least 6000 patients die each year while on waiting lists for new organs (Petersen & Lippert-Rasmussen, 2011). Although thousands of transplant candidates die from end-stage diseases of vital organs while waiting for a suitable organ, only a fraction of eligible organ donors actually donate. Hence, the stark discrepancy in transplantable organ supply and demand is one of the reasons that exacerbate this organ donation shortage (Parker, Winslade, & Paine, 2002). In the past, many people sought the supply of transplantable organs from cadaver donors. However, when many ethical issues arose about how to determine whether someone is truly dead by either cardiopulmonary or neurological conditions (Tong, 2007), many healthcare professionals and transplant candidates switched their focus on obtaining transplantable organs from living donors instead. As a result, in 2001, the number of living donors surpassed the number of cadaver donors for the first time (Tong, 2007).

    Read More

  • The Utilitarian Theory of Organ Donation

    1815 Words  | 4 Pages

    In this paper I will be using the normative theory of utilitarianism as the best defensible approach to increase organ donations. Utilitarianism is a theory that seeks to increase the greatest good for the greatest amount of people (Pense2007, 61). The utilitarian theory is the best approach because it maximizes adult organ donations (which are the greater good) so that the number of lives saved would increase along with the quality of life, and also saves money and time.

    Read More

  • Understanding Organ Donation: Importance, Controversies, and Perspectives

    1404 Words  | 3 Pages

    People make their decisions to commit to organ donation based off of religious perspectives, the negatives and positives to donating, and the benefits to donating.

    Read More

  • Organ Compensation

    622 Words  | 2 Pages

    In a person’s life there comes to a point when a challenging decision must be made. Even the toughest decision could involve risking one’s life to make someone else’s better. An individual at the age of sixteen comes to the decision when deciding whether he or she should donate his or her organs. According to Gary S. Becker and Julio J. Elias, “ In 2012, 95,000 American men, women and children were on the waiting list for new kidneys, the most commonly transplanted organ” (222). Some are on this waiting list for approximately 2.9 years (222). There is a significant amount of people who die each day to the unavailability of organs. Organ compensation reduces long wait times and several deaths. Almost fifty patients on the waiting list can enjoy a sick-free life from a donor patient. If one is receiving compensation to help others, there would be a ready supply of these organs to cure one’s needs. The need of organs is a huge deal in easing the suffering of each individual's sickness.

    Read More

More about Organ Donation

Open Document