It’s Time to Choose

As Wales gets ready to change the organ donation law on December 1, people are being urged to start thinking about their organ donation choices with the launch of the next phase of the Welsh Government’s organ donation awareness campaign – It’s Time to Choose.

From today, new television adverts, by award-winning Welsh director Marc Evans, will be broadcast, together with new radio and digital adverts.

This phase of the campaign will also be supported by the first national leaflet drop to all Welsh households. The aim of the new advertising is to encourage Welsh residents to think about their organ donation choices and to provide them with the information to allow them to formally register their decision to opt in or opt out of becoming an organ donor – if they wish to do so – in advance of December 1.

On December 1, Wales will become the first country in the UK to introduce a soft opt-out system for organ donation. The new law will make it easier for people to make a decision about whether or not they want to become organ donors.

Under the new system, if people have not registered a decision to become an organ donor (opted in) or a decision not to become an organ donor (opted out), they will be considered as having no objection to being an organ donor -this is called deemed consent.

The latest advertising campaign, which focuses on the need to think about organ donation choices, comes after the most recent public attitudes survey has been published, which shows the proportion of adults aware of the organ donation changes has increased from 57% in June 2014 to 63% in March 2015.

The proportion of people saying the system would change to opt-out or presumed consent increased from 70% to 81% over the same period, the survey found.

Health and Social Services Minister Mark Drakeford said:

“December 1 will see Wales become the first country in the UK to introduce a soft opt-out system for organ donation. We hope this new law will help save lives by transforming attitudes towards consent to organ donation here in Wales.

“It’s great to see awareness of the organ donation law change is increasing.  As we move into the next phase of the public awareness campaign, we hope people will continue talking to their loved ones about their organ donation choices.

“Working with NHS Blood and Transplant and the three other UK countries, the Organ Donor Register has been completely redeveloped to support the new legislation. It will be formally launched this summer. However, people wishing to register their organ donor choice before December 1 – whether they are opting in or opting out – can do so anytime from now.”

From December 1, your choices will be:

If you want to be a donor then you can:

• Register a decision to become an organ donor (opt in) or
• Choose to do nothing and have your consent deemed. By doing nothing you are regarded as having no objection to becoming an organ donor.

If you do not want to be a donor you can:

• Register a decision not to be a donor (opt out) from summer 2015.

If you register a decision to become an organ donor, you will be able to choose to donate all organs and tissues or to select specific organs or tissues you wish to donate.

Many families refuse organ donation if they do not know what their loved one wanted. Whatever your organ donation decision is, make time to talk with your loved ones.