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ALLIANCE Live interview on organ and tissue donation law change

  • Area of Work: The ALLIANCE
  • Type: News Item
  • Published: 21st January 2021

As Scotland’s moves to an opt-out system of organ and tissue donation, find out what this means for you and your family.

The ALLIANCE’s Director of Policy and Communications, Lucy Mulvagh, interviews the Regional Manager of the NHS’s Scotland Organ Donation Services Team, Susan Hannah, about the law changes on organ and tissue donation in Scotland.

Watch the interview on YouTube (this link will take you away from our website) to find out more, including why it has come about, what it could mean for you and your family, and how to register your decision whether to opt-in or opt-out.

As Susan answers questions submitted by ALLIANCE members, she encourages everyone to think about their decision, share it with family and friends, and register on the Organ Donor Register.

The law change

On 26 March 2021, a new law comes into into effect in Scotland with the aim of saving and improving lives. The new law means that if people aged 16 and over have not recorded a decision about organ and tissue donation, they will be considered a potential donor when they die.

Everyone has a choice – to record their decision to be a donor, or to opt out of donation – and people are being encouraged to think about their decision, and make it known.

Whatever that decision, the best way to record it is on the NHS Organ Donor Register. The change in law does not mean people are automatically put on the Register. Donation is a personal decision and people can record their choice and preferences there at any time.

As well as recording your donation decision, it’s also important to share it with family so they know what you’d want to happen. Having that knowledge will allow them to share your latest views on donation to help ensure your decision is honoured.

You can record your donation decision today at organdonationscotland.org (this link will take you away from our website) – and find out more about your choices under the new law, and what it means for you, and your family.

For general queries, or to register your donation decision, call 0300 123 23 23

For queries related to the law change call 0300 303 2094.

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