Local university holds memorial for organ, body donors

Taipei, March 26 (CNA) A local university known for its medical program organized a memorial service Saturday for people who donated their bodies to science.

A total of 51 donors, of whom 41 are organ donors and 10 are body donors, were remembered by their family, their organ recipients, and medical students for their contribution to society, said a representative from Chang Gung University.

Such ceremonies are held each year by the university prior to Tombsweeping Day, a time when Chinese visit the tombs of ancestors and pay homage to deceased family members.

An executive officer from the Taiwan Organ Registry and Sharing Center said that despite a large demand for organs each year, the public still lacks the willingness to give the gift of life.

"Although we had 209 donors last year, benefiting 700 to 800 recipients, there are 7200 people on the waiting list for a chance to live again, " said Liu Chia-chi, the center's deputy chief executive officer.

"We urge families to have discussions about death and the possibility of donating organs while they are healthy because you never know when an accident is going to happen, " Liu said. "There is just not enough time to hold the discussion after an accident has occurred."

To make a change, the center is promoting education on the matter to students as young as third grade.

"We stage a show to tell kids the meaning of life and how life can be extended to other people through organ donation," Liu said.

Since last year, the Department of Health has encouraged hospitals to give out organ transplant leaflets to hospitalized patients, even those with minor injuries, a move that Liu believes can raise awareness for organ donation.

Fang Ji-tseng, a doctor at the university's medical school, also noted the importance of cadavers for anatomy lab sessions that both new and experienced physicians partake in.

"Doctors not only gain medical knowledge in anatomy lessons, they also learn the spirit of giving and the value of life from those who donated their body to science" Fang said, "all of this is required by good doctors."