The Federal Office of Public Health said the aim of the three-year operation was to raise awareness of the importance of donations. The government has set aside CHF3.5 million ($3.5 million).
Last year a record number of organ donors was registered, with 18.6 per one million residents. The authorities hope to increase the number to 22 by 2021.
About 80% of the population is apparently in favour of organ donations, but only very few of them let their families know about it, according to a statement published by the health office on Monday.
Campaigners warn that families might face difficult situations if they are not sure whether a deceased person gave consent to an organ donation.
Last October the Swisstransplant foundation opened an organ donor register, 12 months after a people’s initiative was launched aimed at promoting organ donations. If successful in a nationwide vote, organ donations would be based on presumed consent, reversing the current opt-in policy, which requires explicit consent by potential donors.
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Shaw specialises in the ethics of organ donation and transplantation in the Institute for Biomedical Ethics at the University of Basel. He is also a member of Britain’s Donation Ethics Committee, which advises the Department of Health on organ policy. Donor cards alone aren’t enough, Shaw believes. Among other things, he questions why Switzerland doesn’t have…
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The Federal Health OfficeExternal link said 145 people had agreed to provide one or several organs upon their death. In addition, 137 live donors had given a kidney or part of their liver. In total, 440 patients were able to benefit in 2017, according to a statement published on Monday. Officials say the increase is…
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