Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 April 2004
307 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Health and Children the steps he is taking to raise the public’s attention to the need for supporting organ donation and transplantation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10692/04]
View answerThe Deputy will be aware that I recently had the honour to launch the 2004 organ donor awareness week, which runs from 3 to 10 April and is organised by the Irish Kidney Association on behalf of the Irish Donor Network. The annual donor awareness campaign is a very important event in the calendar for the Irish health service. It highlights the need for organ donors generally and makes a very important contribution to the national health strategy's commitment to develop organ transplantation services with a view to increasing donation and utilisation rates.
In previous years my Department has been pleased to support donor awareness week and I announced at the launch continuing support for the campaign with the provision of a grant of €350,000. As part of this year's campaign, the Irish Kidney Association has written to all Members of the Dáil and Seanad requesting that they sign a declaration supporting organ donation and transplantation in Ireland. I wholeheartedly endorse this request and was delighted to be the first Member of the Oireachtas to sign the declaration in support of this worthy cause to heighten public awareness of the need for this life-saving act.
In addition to the campaign and in order to ensure that the systems and practices of the transplant programmes in this country are organised in such a way as to maximise all opportunities for organ donation and utilisation, I am proposing to establish, in the near future, an expert group to review organ donation, procurement and utilisation policy in Ireland.
