Organ donation in China: 100% voluntary, 100 times more

Transplants from more than four thousand donors benefited over ten thousand patients in China in 2016.(Photo/China Organ Donation Administrative Center)

In 2016, transplants from more than four thousand donors benefited over ten thousand patients in China. Only six years ago, that number was only one thousand.

In China Organ Donation Administrative Center (CODAC), a branch of the Red Cross Society of China, every organ donation case in China must now be registered. Since 2010, it has been working to improve organ donation in China.

According to Hou Fengzhong, vice director of CODAC, China now only allows organ donation from deceased citizens. Only when the donor has died can he or she be allowed to donate organs. CODAC also respects the donor's will, but the final decision must come from the donors' direct relatives.

Mobile app Wechat is being used to make registration for organ donors much easier. It takes only a few minutes, and over ten thousand people have signed up as organ donors in the past year.

However, locating a potential donor is only the first step. In traditional Chinese culture, keeping the body of the deceased intact is very important, thus many people turn away from organ donation or body donation.

Doctor Li Wei has over three hundred patients waiting for a kidney transplant, yet he performed only a dozen operations last year.

For many doctors, the most difficult part is getting the approval of a donor's relatives. Not just one next of kin, but everyone close to the donor.

To help doctors and the donor's family, people are now working as organ donation coordinators to facilitate the process. They are all registered with CODAC.‍

The organ donation coordinators oversee the entire process, from locating potential donors to the transplant surgery. There are over two thousand coordinators currently working across China. Many already work in the medical system, and have volunteered for the role.