LAUSR

Introduction WHO reports around 130000 of solid organs transplants each year covering about 10% of the needs worldwide. Participants to the third WHO Global Consultation on Organ Donation and Transplantation urged for self-sufficiency. Countries as Spain, Croatia, Portugal, Belgium and USA have the highest organ donation rates worldwide. Despite different organ donation models in these countries, they dedicate full-time or part-time transplant/organ donor professional experts that coordinate the living and deceased organ donation process, provide specialized training, ensure the quality assurance programs, undertake research activities and estimate the costs and the resources required by the process. Materials and Methods The study analyses the impact of two combined factors on self-sufficiency in nine different countries: The establishment of national and/or regional organ procurement organizations or competent authorities (and delegated bodies), as referred to in the EU Directive 2010/53/EU, that encompass the functions required to authorize, organize and monitor the donation and transplantation process. The delivery of continuous medical education for health care professionals about to join or already involved in the process of organ donation for at least five years. Results Six European countries (Croatia, France, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain), one from Asia (China) and 1 from Middle East (Iran) were compared over a period of more than five years. Steady increase in deceased donors per million population (pmp) was reported in all countries as following: China from 0,025 (2010) to 3,1 (2016), Croatia from 4,3 (1996) to 38,6 (2016), France from 15,1 (1996) to 28,7 (2016), Italy from 11 (1996) to 24,3 (2016), Portugal from 21,2 (1996) to 32,6 (2016), Slovenia from 11 (2000) to 20,4 (2016), Spain from 26,9 (1996) to 43,4 (2016), and Iran from 0 (1999) to 11,5 (2016). It is essential to highlight that in China, the number of organs donated almost doubled in 2016 (4080), as a result of building the organ donation system, optimizing the legal system, banning the organ procurement from executed prisoners in 2015, and implementing continuous medical education. Conclusion Continuous multifactorial approach tackling organ donation at different professional involvement leads to a steady increase of donation rates and better self-sufficiency.