ERs and Organs and Transplants, Oh My

Great article from the Washington Post that examines the complicated issues surrounding organ transplantation in this country. A Health and Human Services grant is funding a pilot program in two Pittsburgh hospitals to determine the feasibility and acceptability of transplanting organs from patients who die in the ED.

Personally, I favor a national opt-out policy for organ donation, as opposed to our current opt-in system. Until that change is made, however, I can understand the fear that some patients or family members have of physicians not working as hard to save the life of an organ donor. It seems that the Pittsburgh project has well-designed safeguards in place, but it will be interesting to see how the program unfolds.