Organ Donation

Thousands of people awaiting an organ transplant have been given a major boost by Weymouth and Portland Borough Council residents.

More than 6,500 people have pledged to help others after their death by joining the NHS Organ Donor Register

The council teamed up with UK Transplant to give its residents the chance to sign up to the NHS Organ Donor Register by returning a special form at the same time as their annual electoral registration form.

Sue Bonham-Lovett, Weymouth and Portland's electoral services manager, who presented the first three boxes to Sue Falvey, UK Transplant's Director of Donor Care and Co-ordination, said: "The response has been fantastic - nearly a quarter of our electorate have signed up for the register.

"We have had lots of really supportive calls from people praising us for what we are doing and asking us all kinds of questions.

"Many people had said they had often thought about signing up as an organ donor but didn't know how to go about it. The donor form was just the thing, it seems.

"Our electorate is only 28,000 and to get nearly a quarter to respond is fabulous - and the forms are still coming in."

A total of 40 local authorities from Scotland to Cornwall are taking part in the Vote for Life scheme after UK Transplant wrote to more than 400 UK councils urging them to participate.

Sue Falvey said: "The fact that each and every one of these people have pledged to donate their organs in the event of their death shows the measure of support for organ donation to save life.

"Through Weymouth and Portland's support, we managed to reach into the homes of thousands of people and together they are helping to provide an enormous boost to organ donation."

UK Transplant - the NHS special health authority responsible for organ donation and transplantation services across the UK - maintains the confidential Organ Donor Register, which currently contains 9.7 million names.

Organ transplantation dramatically improved or saved the lives of more than 2,700 people last year but at any one time more than 5,500 people are waiting for a transplant.
Last year, almost 400 people died while waiting for a heart, liver, lung or kidney transplant.

For further information on organ donation, visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk.