What is tissue donation?
Tissue donation is the process where specific tissues are removed from the body of a deceased person and transplanted to a recipient to improve their quality of life.
In Western Australia, tissues that can be donated include:
- eyes – corneas and sclera
- bone, tendons, and ligaments
Tissue banks are governed by the Therapeutic Goods Administration, which regulates procurement, storage, and testing of the tissue prior to transplantation. The tissue banks have guidelines for donation which may exclude some people, for safety reasons.
Referral process
Donation specialist coordinators, who work for DonateLife (The WA organ and tissue donation agency), are notified of all deaths in public and some private hospitals, and those under coronial jurisdiction. If the death is under coronial investigation, the donation specialist coordinator must obtain consent for donation from a coronial representative.
To assist with screening and prior to any conversation with a family, the donation specialist coordinator may contact health professionals involved in caring for the deceased and request information. This will include cause of death, circumstances around the death, past medical history and whether coronial jurisdiction applies.
As DonateLife is an agency for the Department of Health, donation specialist coordinators are the authorised personnel permitted access to this information, and routinely review medical notes and laboratory results.
To speak with a donation specialist coordinator, please page the 24/7 on-call donation coordinator via the switchboard at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital: 08 9346 3333.
Consent process
The donation specialist coordinators have authorisation to access to the Australian Organ Donor Register (AODR), to determine if the deceased person has recorded their wishes in relation to tissue donation.
Families are generally contacted by telephone, to talk about their loved one’s opportunity to donate their tissues. If their loved one was a registered donor, they are asked to confirm that decision, or if their loved one was not registered and if there is no objection to donation, to consent on their behalf.
The donation specialist coordinator explains the donation process and answers questions the family may have. Families are asked to answer a questionnaire about medical, lifestyle, social and travel history of the deceased person. Generally, those closest to the potential donor will be best able to answer such questions. This information is used with medical records to determine if donation is possible.
After family consent, and before tissue retrieval - it is a legal requirement that the hospital’s designated or delegated officer authorises the removal of the tissue.
Retrieval process
Eye and tissue donation can occur up 24 hours after death, and is a possibility for people who die following circulatory death or neurological death, depending which state or territory they die in.
- corneas – within 12-24 hours
- long bones and associated tissue – within 24 hours
If the person is also an organ donor, the retrieval of tissues may take place in the operating theatre, after the organs have been retrieved.
If the person is not an organ donor, the deceased must be admitted to a mortuary within 12 hours of death, and tissue retrieved within a specific timeframe, as required by Therapeutic Good regulations.
All tissue retrievals occur prior to any post-mortem examination.
Following donation, the donor’s appearance is restored with the use of prosthetic implants. There is no impact on the family’s funeral plans.
After retrieval, the tissue is processed by the relevant tissue bank. Corneas are implanted within one month, whereas bones, and tendons may be stored for up to five years, awaiting transplant.
Donor family support
All families of tissue donors receive comprehensive follow-up care, which includes information regarding the outcomes of the donation. DonateLife has a donor family support coordinator, who offers confidential counselling options related to grief and bereavement. Family members are given a commemorative lapel pin specially designed for the families of organ and tissue donors, in recognition of their family member’s donation. They are also invited to an annual remembrance ceremony.
There is also support and communication with the organ and tissue donation agency, for as long as the donor family feels appropriate.
More information
For any questions on tissue donation in general or regarding a specific patient, please ring Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital switchboard on 08 9346 3333 and ask for the on-call donation specialist coordinator. Coordinators are available 24 hours, seven days a week.