Browse Topics
Tools
Editor's choice

Mysterious City of Gods comes to City of Light

Some 450 pre-Columbian pieces in Quai Branly museum.

France country factbook

Includes geography, people, government, economy and transnational issues.

Scandals from the 'The Wild West of Politics'

Basil Howitt on criminal investigations in the coastal resorts.

Renting in Paris

Useful information on renting accommodation in Paris.

Moving your marriage abroad

Relocating can have a big impact on your relationship.

Internaxx Stock Market
Index Last Var.(%)
BEL 20 2119.3 0.50
DAX 5252.45 1.50
IBEX 30 10726.8 0.59
CAC 40 3377.59 1.40
FTSE 100 4564.5 0.79
AEX 276.85 0.95
DJIA 9096.72 -0.13
Nasdaq 1975.51 0.39
FTSE MIB 20341.67 1.65
TSX Composite 10570.54 -1.74
ASX 4148.9 -0.60
Hang seng 20135.5 -2.37
Straits Times 0.00
ISEQ 20 442.48 0.27
You are here: Home Health & Fitness Healthcare Organ donation and the right to consent

Healthcare

archive
Print Email Comment Subscribe
Enlarge font Decrease font Text size

22/12/2008Organ donation and the right to consent

Since the first human kidney transplant in 1954, organ transplant surgery has offered hope to thousands of people around the world. But even as the medical techniques improve, waiting lists get longer and people die every day for lack of a donor.

Donating an organ after one dies is not an easy thing. First, the person needs to die in a certain way, called brain death, which leaves the organs undamaged. It also helps if the person is otherwise healthy. And it usually requires the person to already be in an intensive care unit of a hospital to save time.
Paul Beerkens, Netherlands Kidney Foundation
Added to this is the need for consent - either being a registered donor, or at least having made one's preference clear to loved ones. That means people have to ‘opt in' But some countries have flipped the requirement on its head.
'Presumed consent'
France, Spain and Belgium all have laws that presume that an individual wants his or her organs to be donated, unless they ‘opted out' while they were alive.
But is this an intrusion on a persons rights, for the government to declare that the default stance is in favour of donation? Paul Beerkens, of the Netherlands Kidney Foundation, disagrees.
"There's a huge misunderstanding here. It's the person that decides. Even if the government changes the law, it's you that decides if you want to be a donor or not - and you can change that every day. At the end of the day, it's you that decides, or your family that decides. Not the government."

David Nix, Donor Family Network
Have your French News delivered straight to your inbox - sign up for our e-mail newsletter now!

Print Email Comment Subscribe

General rating: Not rated yet

Rate article:    Add my rating

0 reactions to this article

Reply
Health & Fitness essentials
Health & Fitness forums
participate in the forums
Health & Fitness expert Q&A
ask your question
Health & Fitness A-Z listings
find the business you need
Discussion Forums

Family

Play group in Strasbourg?, by CanadianMumInStrasbourg

French News

Firends in LYON(France), by frger

Television

American TV?, by dr. klaus

Television

Is it possible to access BBC1/BBC2 in France?, by dr. klaus

Groups & Clubs

Any Anglophone groups in the Pas de Calais, by muddhabuddha

participate in the forums

Inside Expatica
Do the recent healthcare changes affect you?

Do the recent healthcare changes affect you?

Our expert Steven Grover delves into the murky waters of French healthcare for expats and asks how recent changes affect them?

Assurance Vie - An expatriate’s guide

Assurance Vie - An expatriate’s guide

Tax and estate planning figure prominently in the list of priorities of many financially secure expatriate residents of France.

Clubs, groups and associations in France

Clubs, groups and associations in France

From Gaelic clubs to Canadian Alumni organisations, there is bound to be an English-speaking club for you in France.

Should I buy or rent in France?

Should I buy or rent in France?

This is what you need to consider when making an early choice between purchasing or renting accommodation in France.