Patients waiting for organs will benefit from changes to organ transplant services designed to better match donated organs with recipients, increase the number of transplants and improve the patient experience.
The Organ Utilisation Group has produced the report, Honouring the gift of donation: utilising organs for transplant, which includes a number of recommendations, accepted by the Government, designed to make sure as many donated organs as possible are used to save the lives of patients on the waiting list.
These recommendations include placing the patient at the centre of the service, developing better systems so more organs are used and sharing best practice to raise standards across transplant centres.
A key element to making the most of donated organs is better co-operation between transplant centres. During the pandemic, transplant centres improved their communication with each other so organs went to the most suitable patient rather than simply the one who lived closest. This will be built on to increase the chance of successfully matching donated organs to patients.
Recommendations to improve patient care include:
- Patients and clinicians to work together on how they can communicate more throughout the process. This will include better evaluation of the whole experience, including the emotional and psychological pressures of waiting for an organ, rather than just the clinical outcome
- Regular feedback from transplant centres to help those on the transplant list to better understand the clinical options available to them and make informed and evidence-based decisions
- More timely reviews if donated organs are declined and the sharing of best practice between centres to raise standards across the country
The Government has already introduced an opt-out system to increase the number of available organs. This report details how to best honour those donations by using as many as possible to save lives.
Minister for Health Neil O’Brien said: "This Government vowed to increase organ donation and improve organ transplant services, including by making the most of scientific advances and adopting novel technologies across the country as early as possible, and we are keeping our promise. We are taking forward recommendations which will ensure as many organs as possible are matched with the recipients who need them as well as improving the experience of waiting for a life saving organ."
There are currently an estimated 7,000 patients on the active transplant list and every day, on average, at least one person dies waiting for an organ.
The Government commissioned the organ utilisation group to review how the organ transplant system currently operates and how it can be improved. Too often organs were not properly utilised and there were varying standards of performance and patient care.
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, co-chair of the Organ Utilisation Group said: "It has been a privilege to chair the Organ Utilisation Group, working together with colleagues from across the breadth of the transplant community to improve the number of organs that are accepted and successfully transplanted, and ensure equity of access across the country.
"Organ donation is a precious gift of life, helping to save or improve the lives of thousands of people each year. The recommendations in this report will drive improvements to the transplantation service, ensuring that as many donated organs can be successfully transplanted as possible, and deliver real improvements for patients and their families, enabling them to have the best experience and outcomes possible.
"Driving, developing and supporting research and innovations in transplantation will be key to these improvements. National multi-organ centres for assessment and repair will increase the opportunities to bring new techniques into everyday clinical practice, maximising the number and quality of organs available for transplant. Transplants, organ donors and the teams that make them possible give people a second chance at life and these new recommendations will enable the NHS to change the lives of thousands more people in the years to come."
A review of heart and lung services will also take place to make sure there are enough clinicians in the right place at the right time to carry out transplants. This will form part of the long term NHS workforce planning. The report also includes recommendations on how to quickly identify and adopt proven technologies and scientific advances to put innovations into practice.
The UK has a strong track record in developing pioneering transplant services and the report identifies how best to take the practical steps required to enable new technologies to be applied to clinical therapy.
Chief Executive Officer at NHS Blood and Transplant Wendy Clark said: "Organ donation is a precious gift and we need to ensure that every organ that is safe to transplant is used to save lives. NHSBT has an ongoing commitment to empowering patients and supporting transplant teams in their work. We look forward to working with colleagues across the transplant care pathway to implement these recommendations and by working together, even more lives will be saved every year through the gift of organ donation."
The opt-out change to organ donations, known as Max and Keira’s Law, was designed to increase the number of organs available. The organ donation taskforce report revolutionised donation services and led to a 50% increase in organ donor rates within 5 years and then almost doubling within 10 years.
