The effect on consent rates for deceased organ donation in Wales after the introduction of an opt‐out system
Madden and colleagues report the closest thing to a controlled test of an organ donation default. Wales introduced a soft opt-out system in December 2015 while England kept its opt-in system, which allows a direct comparison of two neighbouring health services. Between January 2016 and December 2018 the families of 8,192 eligible donors in England and 474 in Wales were approached, with overall consent rates of sixty-five per cent and sixty-eight per cent respectively. The proportion of families consenting to donation after brain death rose steadily in Wales relative to England and the difference reached significance after thirty-three months. No change was observed in consent for donation after circulatory death. A risk-adjusted analysis found that by the end of the period the probability of consent was higher in Wales. The authors conclude that the opt-out system significantly increased consent, and that the impact was not immediate.
Madden and colleagues report the closest thing to a controlled test of an organ donation default. Wales introduced a soft opt-out system in December 2015 while England kept its opt-in system, which allows a direct comparison of two neighbouring health services. Between January 2016 and December 2018 the families of 8,192 eligible donors in England and 474 in Wales were approached, with overall consent rates of sixty-five per cent and sixty-eight per cent respectively. The proportion of families consenting to donation after brain death rose steadily in Wales relative to England and the difference reached significance after thirty-three months. No change was observed in consent for donation after circulatory death. A risk-adjusted analysis found that by the end of the period the probability of consent was higher in Wales. The authors conclude that the opt-out system significantly increased consent, and that the impact was not immediate.
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Madden, S., Collett, D., Walton, P., et al. (2020). 'The effect on consent rates for deceased organ donation in Wales after the introduction of an opt-out system.' Anaesthesia, 75(9), 1146-1152. Consent 68 per cent in Wales against 65 per cent in England over three years. doi:10.1111/anae.15055
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https://doi.org/10.1111/anae.15055
DOI: 10.1111/anae.15055