Post mortem tissue donation in the Netherlands: a nationwide approach.

In this article we describe the organization of post mortem tissue donation in the Netherlands, the average number of tissue donors procured during the years 2015-2019 and the main challenges we face to improve this number. Licensed by the Dutch Ministry of Health, the Dutch Transplant Foundation (NTS) plays a central role in the organization of tissue donation. The NTS works closely with the Dutch hospitals, two tissue banks and a procurement organization.

Controlled donation after circulatory death in the Netherlands: more organs, more efforts.

Background: The Netherlands was one of the first countries in Europe to stimulate controlled donation after circulatory death (cDCD) at a national level in addition to donation after brain death (DBD). With this program the number of organ transplants increased, but it also proved to have challenges as will be shown in this 15-year review.

Methods: Data about deceased organ donation in the Netherlands, from 2000 until 2014, were analysed taking into account the whole donation process from donor referral to the number of organs transplanted.

Imprecise definitions of starting points in retrospectively reviewing potential organ donors causes confusion: call for a reproducible method like 'imminent brain death'.

Low donor supply and the high demand for transplantable organs is an international problem. The efficiency of organ procurement is often expressed by donor conversion rates (DCRs). These rates differ among countries, but a uniform starting point for defining a potential heart-beating donor is lacking.

Appointing 'trained donation practitioners' results in a higher family consent rate in the Netherlands: a multicenter study.

The consent process for organ and tissue donation is complex, both for families and professionals. To help professionals in broaching this subject we performed a multicenter study. We compared family consent to donation in three hospitals between December 2007 and December 2009.

Current situation of donation after circulatory death in European countries.

The aim of the present study was to describe the current situation of donation after circulatory death (DCD) in the Council of Europe, through a dedicated survey. Of 27 participating countries, only 10 confirmed any DCD activity, the highest one being described in Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (mainly controlled) and France and Spain (mainly uncontrolled). During 2000-2009, as DCD increased, donation after brain death (DBD) decreased about 20% in the three countries with a predominant controlled DCD activity, while DBD had increased in the majority of European countries.