A focus on health care professionals in organ donation: a cross-sectional survey

Abstract

OVER THE PAST 25 years, a great deal of effort has been concentrated on increasing public awareness about transplantation and organ donation in Turkey. Unfortunately, however, the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and concerns of health care professionals (HCPs) have often been given minimal consideration, or even neglected. It is a well-known fact that HCPs, particularly those doctors and nurses who work mainly in the critical-care areas of a hospital, are key elements in the process of cadaver-organ donation. A recent survey undertaken by Evanisko et al revealed that two thirds of critical-care staff members lack the necessary training in this delicate area. This and other studies have also underscored the significant relationship between training of hospital staff and organ donation rates. We were unable to gauge the effect that such training programs have on performance measures in cadaver donations across the country; however, we designed a cross-sectional survey to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and behavior pertaining to cadaver-organ donation and transplantation in a group of doctors and nurses at five separate institutions in three Turkish cities.