Wednesday, 20 March 2024

Legal and Social Issues Committee

Register and Talk about It: Inquiry into Increasing the Number of Registered Organ and Tissue Donors

Chris COUZENS (Geelong) (10:23): I am pleased to rise to contribute on the report by the Legal and Social Issues Committee inquiry into increasing the number of registered organ and tissue donors. I want to start by acknowledging Jessica Strout and the secretariat team for their incredible work throughout this inquiry. To the committee chair, the member for Lara: thank you for your significant guidance and sensitivity, particularly to those families and individuals who shared their own personal and at times emotional experiences giving evidence to the committee. I also want to acknowledge the Legal and Social Issues Committee members and the work that they have put into this inquiry.

The final report makes 74 findings and 41 recommendations to improve registrations and improve access to registration. The committee received 49 submissions and eight pieces of additional information. The committee held seven days of public hearings, hearing from 73 witnesses across 31 ‍sessions. The committee also conducted an onsite visit to the Donor Tissue Bank of Victoria. I do want to thank the experts, organisations, volunteers, individuals and of course families who contributed to this important inquiry.

I am not sure how many people are aware that a deceased donor can help up to seven people through organ donation and 200 people through tissue donations. During the inquiry David Gillard, a donor parent, told us that many Victorians know that they can be an organ donor but are unaware they can also become a tissue donor:

Organ donation was not an option because they still had to go through a process of investigation, but he was a prime candidate for tissue donation. We thought, ‘This is what Rhys would want.’

Rhys was always sharing and giving during his life, ‘so it was kind of perfect’, he said. He continued:

So the machine kicked in, the process went through. Later on we found out that he donated corneas and skin, and over time we found out that all of his donations were successfully – I do not know what the word is – not transplanted but gifted, and it gave us a lot of comfort knowing that he had helped other people.

Discussing organ and tissue donation and sharing donation wishes with family reduces the burden of decision-making for a potential donor’s family at a time of intense grief and substantially increases the likelihood that a family will consent to donation. Cynthia Caruana, a donor parent, said:

It is important to note here that it was from all the conversations that we had as a family that we were fully aware of his wishes, which made it easier to fulfil when his time was here. It is crucial for a person’s loved ones and next of kin to be aware of their wishes. If not, the additional shock at a time of such grief and sadness is almost overwhelming for families to take in, and the decision, with such a small window, is sometimes lost.

The rate of family consent to donation has decreased over the past 10 years. Family consent in the donation process is critical. Families are always asked for consent when organ and tissue donation is considered.

The committee recommends automatically contacting people after they register on the Australian Organ Donor Register to encourage them to share their donation wishes with family and to provide information on starting family discussions and an option to share donation decisions with family members via email. It is important to talk to your family once you have registered to become a donor, because they will be asked to consent to the donation. Education and awareness initiatives about the AODR and donation can be tailored for different communities. Local government areas across Victoria have varying AODR registration rates. Every locality has different demographics. For example, some are more culturally diverse than others or expect to see a large increase in population. I ask all members in this place to register, if they have not already, and to read this report or at least the summary booklet Register and Talk about It. This was a really fascinating inquiry for me, and I commend this report to the house.