THE GOVERNMENT has approved the drafting of a Bill to regulate the issue of organ removal and retention, says a Government spokesman.
The Cabinet decided at its meeting yesterday to proceed with a Bill that would implement the recommendations of the Madden report, published in January 2006. Legal expert Dr Deirdre Madden examined postmortem practices in hospitals in the light of the controversy over the retention, without the knowledge or consent of their parents, of the organs of children who had died and made over 50 recommendations.
The Bill will regulate the removal, retention and disposal of human tissue during postmortems. It will also regulate the issue of consent from either a living person or from the next of kin of a deceased person to the taking of tissue for transplantation.
The Bill will prohibit the sale or trafficking of human tissue or organs. In addressing the issue of consent to the taking of organs or tissue for transplantation, the Bill will provide for an “opt-in” system rather than an “opt-out” one, though the Department of Health will engage in a public consultation process about the best regime.
An “opt-in” system requires a person, or their next of kin, to give specific consent to the taking of organs or tissue in the event of death. An “opt-out” system operated on the basis that consent has been given unless a statement has been made to the contrary.
There are divisions within the medical profession about the benefits of the different systems, with some doctors favouring an “opt-out” system as it maximises the number of organs available, while others are concerned that this could damage the doctor-patient relationship.
The Madden report pointed out that there was no legislative framework in place, and no consistent national policy in relation to postmortem practices prior to 2002. The Bill will seek to address these issues. One of the most controversial aspects of the practice of retaining organs in children’s hospitals was the retention of pituitary glands which were then used by pharmaceutical companies in the manufacture of human growth hormones. This ceased when a synthetic product was found.