The silence of Good Samaritan kidney donation in Australia: a survey of hospital websites

Abstract

It is common for living donor candidates to use the Internet as a tool to enhance their decision-making process. Specifically, the websites of transplant hospitals can potentially be a vital source of information for those contemplating living donation. In an effort to explore the low incidence of Good Samaritan kidney donation (donations to strangers) in Australia, two raters conducted a nine-attribute website content analysis for all hospitals which participate in these transplants (n = 15). Overall, the concept of living donation is relatively silent on Australian hospital websites. Only four hospitals mention their living donor program, and only one mentions their Good Samaritan program. No site linked directly to Australia's AKX Paired Kidney Exchange Program - the only program which facilitates pair and chain transplants in Australia. Further, information about deceased donation is nearly absent as well. An individual with the altruistic desire to donate will generally find scant or absent information about donation at the website of their local transplant hospital, although this information could easily be present as an educational tool which supports the consent process. Using a hospital website to educate the public about a clinical service should not be viewed as ethically problematic (solicitation), but rather an ethical essential.

Determinants of Frequent Internet Use in an Urban Kidney Transplant Population in the United States: Characterizing the Digital Divide

“…transplant websites and their potential benefit. 3,[9][10][11][12] Interest in harnessing the potential of the Internet has grown as technology has improved, as evidenced by the $38 billion investment in health information technology authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. 9 However, although the potential benefits associated with the Internet is a reality for some, these benefits have not been extended to all.…”

“What if this is my chance to save my life?” A semistructured interview study on the motives and experiences of end-stage renal disease patients who engaged in public solicitation of a living kidney donor

“…Some participants also excluded potential, but ABOincompatible donors, even though they could have been screened for inclusion in the national paired kidney exchange program. These findings highlight the importance of systematic education for all patients with ESRD about living donation programs, and a need for support in raising the topic of living donation, for example, on hospital websites [17] or by home-based educational initiatives [26][27][28].…”

Four years of experience with the Australian kidney paired donation programme

“…Conventional KPD transplants require incompatible pairs to be matched to other pairs with reciprocal incompatibilities, which may be challenging when only few pairs are available . Incorporation of non‐directed anonymous donors (NDAD), also known as Good Samaritan or altruistic donors, into a KPD registry can initiate a chain of transplants without obligatory matching of a paired recipient . Such chains are usually terminated with the last paired registered donor donating to a waitlist recipient .…”