Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, JIPMER

2 Department of Nephrology, JIPMER, Puducherry, India

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Organ donation is considered to be a noble act. Medical and nursing students will
be the major healthcare providers in this field in the future. Hence, their knowledge, attitude, and
perception toward organ donation are essential to improve this field in the future.
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to assess the knowledge, attitude, and perception on
organ donation among undergraduate medical and nursing students. This study brings forth the
basic understanding level of the medical and nursing students on the concept of organ donation.
METHODS: A cross‑sectional descriptive study was conducted among the first 4 academic years of
medical and nursing students in a tertiary care teaching hospital using convenient sampling. A total
of 620 students participated in this study. They were assessed using a pretested semi‑structured
self‑administered questionnaire. The data were analyzed using Statistical Package of the Social
Sciences version 19.
RESULTS: The median score on knowledge, attitude, and perception among the medical students
was 16 (14–17), 25 (23–28), and 41 (38–45), respectively, and among the nurses, the scores were
14 (12–16), 25 (22–27), and 39 (33–42), respectively. Almost half (46.9%) of the study participants
knew the definition for brain death. Twenty‑nine percent of the study participants knew about the
existence of law toward organ donation; more than half of those participants (52.7%) mentioned few
rules and regulation involved in the laws pertaining to organ donation.
CONCLUSION: Media is the major source for information. Only less than half of the study participants
were knowledgeable on the definition of brain death and existence of organ donation law. Although
they are in favor of organ donation, doubts still exist among few of the participants which could be
understood through further research in this field.

Keywords

1. Grinyó JM. Why is organ transplantation clinically important?
Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med 2013;3:a014985.
2. René AA, Viera E, Jiles R, Daniels DE. Organ donation awareness:
Knowledge, attitudes and beliefs in a Puerto Rican population.
Transplant Proc 1995;27:1893‑6.
3. Cantwell M, Clifford C. English nursing and medical students’
attitudes towards organ donation. J Adv Nurs 2000;32:961‑8.
4. Myths, Misconceptions and the Reality of Organ Donation.
Available from: http://www.mohanfoundation.
org/organ‑donation‑transplant‑resources/
Myths‑Misconceptions‑and‑the‑Reality‑of‑Organ‑Donation.
asp. [Last accessed on 2018 Jan 14].
5. N a t i o n a l D e c e a s e d D o n o r T r a n s p l a n t a t i o n ; 2 0 1 5 .
Available from: https://www.mohanfoundation.org/
national‑deceased‑donor‑transplantation.asp. [Last view on
2019 Feb 27;Last accessed on 2018 Feb 13].
6. Organ donation transplantation India: Overview.
Assia Jew Med Ethics 1997;2 (2):18‑27. Available from:
https://www.scribd.com/document/301843412/
Organ‑Donation‑Transplantation‑India‑Overview. [Last view
on 2019 Feb 27].
7. Evanisko MJ, Beasley CL, Brigham LE, Capossela C, Cosgrove GR,
Light J, et al. Readiness of critical care physicians and nurses to
handle requests for organ donation. Am J Crit Care 1998;7:4‑12.
8. Goila AK, Pawar M. The diagnosis of brain death. Indian J Crit
Care Med 2009;13:7‑11.
9. Goz F, Goz M, Erkan M. Knowledge and attitudes of medical,
nursing, dentistry and health technician students towards organ
donation: A pilot study. J Clin Nurs 2006;15:1371‑5.
10. Poreddi V, Katyayani BV, Gandhi S, Thimmaiah R, Badamath S.
Attitudes, knowledge, and willingness to donate organs
among Indian nursing students. Saudi J Kidney Dis Transpl
2016;27:1129‑38.
11. Chakradhar K, Doshi D, Srikanth Reddy B, Kulkarni S,
Padma Reddy M, Sruthi Reddy S. Knowledge, attitude and
practice regarding organ donation among Indian dental students.
Int J Organ Transplant Med 2016;7:28‑35.
12. Sucharitha ST, Sirki R, Dugyala RR, Mullai Pi, Roshini K,
et al. Organ donation: Awareness, attitudes and beliefs among
undergraduate medical students in South India. Natl J Res
Community Med 2013;2:79‑148.
13. Annadurai K, Mani K, Ramasamy J. A study on knowledge,
attitude and practices about organ donation among college
students in Chennai, Tamil Nadu ‑2012. Prog Health Sci
2013;3:59‑65.
14. Al‑Harthi HA, Alzahrany OA. Perceptions and attitudes of Saudi
adult population toward organ donation, Taif, Saudi Arabia. Int
J Med Sci Public Health 2015;4:1113‑20.
15. Ramadurg UY, Gupta A. Impact of an educational intervention on
increasing the knowledge and changing the attitude and beliefs
towards organ donation among medical students. J Clin Diagn
Res 2014;8:JC05‑7.
16. Saub EJ, Shapiro J, Radecki S. Do patients want to talk to their
physicians about organ donation? Attitudes and knowledge about
organ donation: A study of orange county, California residents.
J Community Health 1998;23:407‑17.
17. Demir T, Selimen D, Yildirim M, Kucuk HF. Knowledge and
attitudes toward organ/tissue donation and transplantation
among health care professionals working in organ transplantation
or dialysis units. Transplant Proc 2011;43:1425‑8.
18. Flodén A, Forsberg A. A phenomenographic study of
ICU‑nurses’ perceptions of and attitudes to organ donation
and care of potential donors. Intensive Crit Care Nurs
2009;25:306‑13.
19. Marqués‑LespierJM, Ortiz‑Vega NM, Sánchez MC, Sánchez MC,
Soto‑Avilés OE, Torres EA. Knowledge of and attitudes toward
organ donation: A survey of medical students in Puerto Rico. P R
Health Sci J 2013;32:187‑93.
20. Grimm P. Social desirability bias. Wiley Int Encycl Mark 2010
Dec 15. Available at:<https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/
pdf/10.1002/9781444316568.wiem02057#accessDenialLayout>,
Last view: 20/06/2019.
21. López‑Montesinos MJ, Manzanera Saura JT, Mikla M, Ríos A,
López‑Navas A, Martínez‑Alarcón L, et al. Organ donation and
transplantation training for future professional nurses as a health
and social awareness policy. Transplant Proc 2010;42:239‑42.
22. Abbasi Dolatabadi Z, Farahani B, Fesharaki M, Najafizadeh K.
Effect of education about brain death and organ donation on
attitude and knowledge of nursing students. Iran J Crit Care Nurs
2010;3:109‑12.
23. McGladeD, PierscionekB. Can education alter attitudes, behaviour
and knowledge about organ donation? A pretest‑post‑test study.
BMJ Open 2013;3:e003961.
24. Mohan Foundation. Available from: https://www.
mohanfoundation.org/THO‑amendment‑act‑2011.pdf. [Last
view on 2019 Feb 27].
25. Ali NF, Qureshi A, Jilani BN, Zehra N. Knowledge and ethical
perception regarding organ donation among medical students.
BMC Med Ethics 2013;14:38.
26. Vijayalakshmi P, Ramachandra, Reddemma K, Math SB.
Perceived human rights violation in persons with mental illness:
Role of education. Int J Soc Psychiatry 2013;59:351‑64.
27. Canova D, De Bona M, Ruminati R, Ermani M, Naccarato R,
Burra P, et al. Understanding of and attitudes to organ donation
and transplantation: A survey among Italian university students.
Clin Transplant 2006;20:307‑12.
28. Mithra P, Ravindra P, Unnikrishnan B, Rekha T, Kanchan T,
Kumar N, et al. Perceptions and attitudes towards organ donation
among people seeking healthcare in tertiary care centers of coastal
South India. Indian J Palliat Care 2013;19:83‑7.
29. Rady MY, Verheijde JL. The moral code in Islam and organ
donation in Western countries: Reinterpreting religious scriptures
to meet utilitarian medical objectives. Philos Ethics Humanit Med
2014;9:11.
30. Sharif A. Organ donation and Islam‑challenges and opportunities.
Transplantation 2012;94:442‑6.
31. Agrawal S, Binsaleem S, Al‑Homrani M, Al‑Juhayim A,
Al‑Harbi A. Knowledge and attitude towards organ donation
among adult population in al‑Kharj, Saudi Arabia. Saudi J Kidney
Dis Transpl 2017;28:81‑9.
32. Russell E, Robinson DH, Thompson NJ, Perryman JP, Arriola KR.
Distrust in the healthcare system and organ donation intentions
among African Americans. J Community Health 2012;37:40‑7.
33. Manojan KK, Raja RA, Nelson V, Beevi N, Jose R. Knowledge
and attitude towards organ donation in rural Kerala. Acad Med
J India 2014;2:25‑7.
34. Reddy AV, Guleria S, Khazanchi RK, Bhardwaj M, Aggarwal S, Mandal S. Attitude of patients, the public, doctors, and nurses
toward organ donation. Transplant Proc 2003;35:18.
35. Spencer M. The barriers to organ and tissue donation in palliative
care. End Life J 2012;2(2). Available at: https://endoflifejournal.
stchristophers.org.uk/the‑barriers-to‑organ‑and‑tissue‑donatio
n‑in‑palliative‑care/, [Last view on 2019 Jun 27].
36. Wangchuk RN. India Changes MBBS Curriculum after 21 Years,
Doctors to Study Ethics and Attitude. The Better India.
Available from: https://www.thebetterindia.com/163797/
mbbs‑curriculum‑india‑news/. [Last view on 2019 Feb 27].