Assessment of Awareness, Knowledge and Attitudes about the Importance of Cadaver and Cadaver Donation: Report of Izmir, Turkey

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the awareness, knowledge level and attitudes of the community in I˙zmir/ Turkey about cadaver donation in medical education. A cross-sectional study was carried out. Randomly chosen 245 participants answered twenty items in the questionnaire providing information about their demographics (5 items), awareness and knowledge (10 items), and attitudes (5 items) about body donation. The questionnaire was applied face-to-face. Descriptive statistics presented. Student T test and One-Way ANOVA test were used for statistical analysis. 123 (50.2 %) participants were male and 159 (64.9 %) were between 30 to 59 years old. 185 (75.5 %) respondents knew what the word "cadaver" means. When asked where they would apply if they decided to donate their body, 104 (42.4 %) of the participants gave the answer "state hospital". The mean score of awareness and knowledge about importance of cadaver and body donation (AWKL-Score) was 0.41±0.24 (min:0.00, max:0.90). AWKL-Score was statistically higher in the youngest (18-29 y) and oldest (>60 y) compared to the other age groups (F:4.115; p:0.007). AWKL-Score increased as the level of education increased. The highest AWKL-Score was at post-graduate level (Level 7,8) (F:22.997; p<0.001). The AWKL-Score was higher in public employees and students compared to other occupational groups (F:5.930; p<0,001). The answers to the questionnaire were important indicators of how much society needs to be informed regarding body donation.

In death there is life: perceptions of the university community regarding body donation for educational purposes in the United Arab Emirates

“…As Erdogan et al. [ 68 ] stated that there is paucity in published information pertaining to body donation programs, virtual and written press releases may be useful in educating the participants that comprise the latter half, thereby promoting the development of such programs.…”

Evaluation of Information on Body Donation Promotion at Official Websites of Turkish Anatomy Departments

“…This lack of information was believed to prevent people from registering as a body donor (Delaney and White, 2015). A recent population‐based study performed in the İzmir province provides a detailed perspective on the possible results of this inertness (Erdoğan et al, 2020). Among the participants, 75.5% knew what the word cadaver meant and 66.9% knew they could donate their bodies as cadavers.…”

“…This implies that ongoing awareness activities might have created an increased knowledge of body donation among the general population. Conversely, only 20.4% of the participants were aware of an ongoing donation campaign (Erdoğan et al, 2020). Sadly, participants reported that they would apply to state hospitals (42.4%), university hospitals (37.1%), family physicians (14%), and private hospitals (6.5%) if they decided to donate their bodies (Erdoğan et al, 2020), yet never mentioned anatomy departments, which are the only legally authorized institutions to accept body donations (T.C.…”

“…Nevertheless, the majority (62.7%) of the participants did not know where to apply for body donation. Furthermore, only 15.9% of the participants were willing to donate their bodies in the future (Erdoğan et al, 2020).…”

“…The study of Erdoğan et al (2020) shows that body donation awareness in Turkey is at a critical stage. Random participants from the general population know body donation is a way of cadaver procurement, yet they were unaware of the existing shortage and did not know where to apply.…”