Abstract
BackgroundOrgan donation following brain death has become an important way of supplying organs for transplantation in many countries. This practice is less common in Iran for different reasons. Therefore, this study aims to explore the obstacles to organ donation following brain death in Iran.MethodsThis qualitative research was conducted following the conventional content analysis method. The study population consisted of individuals with a history of brain death among their blood relatives who refused to donate the organs. Snowball sampling was employed to select the participants. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted for data gathering. Theoretical saturation was achieved through 20 interviews. Data analysis was done following the steps proposed by Graneheim and Lundman. Lincoln and Guba’s criteria were used to ensure data rigor and transferability of the study.ResultsData analyses revealed 185 codes, 23 categories, and seven themes including, poor knowledge about brain death and organ transplantation from a dead body, cultural beliefs, religious beliefs, deficiencies of requesting process, fear and concerns, inability to make a decision, and social learning.ConclusionThere were several factors in families’ reluctance to donate organs of a brain-dead patient. Through improving knowledge and changing cultural beliefs in society, it is possible to take large steps towards promoting organ donation from brain-dead patients.
Highlights
Organ donation following brain death has become an important way of supplying organs for transplantation in many countries
Organ donation is an altruistic decision that can be made by the family members after brain death [2]
Data collection The interviews were started by guide questions like, What happened after the brain death of your family member?; What did you do ?; What were your perceptions and the mental image of brain death and organ donation?; Why did you not give consent to donate an organ?; What was the relatives’ role in your decision?, How did you find the medical personnel’s behavior in asking for organ donation?; and so on
Summary
Organ donation following brain death has become an important way of supplying organs for transplantation in many countries. This practice is less common in Iran for different reasons. This study aims to explore the obstacles to organ donation following brain death in Iran. Organ donation is an altruistic decision that can be made by the family members after brain death [2]. There are 2500–4000 brain deaths per year in Iran which can be candidates for organ donation. The organ donation rate in Iran is 10.9 per one million and this rate places Iran at the 27th rank in the world [8]
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