Integration influences organ donation

Euro Weekly News
EUROPEANS and Latin Americans living in Spain are more open to organ donations than their countrymen back home.

In Latin America, for instance, around 60 per cent of families refuse to donate a deceased member’s organ. In Spain refusals amongst all nationalities are between 15 and 16 per cent, revealed a National Transplant Organisation (ONT) study.

“All these people fully accept the transplant system, probably because they can see that it works and they do not encounter discrimination. The better their treatment by Spanish society, the more integrated they feel,” said ONT director Rafael Matesanz.

The donation rate sends out a very hopeful message and is one that no other European country has achieved, according to Matesanz.

The high organ donation rates do not apply to all foreign residents in Spain, however.

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