Organ Donors on the rise in Greater Manchester
More people than ever are donating their loved one's organs after their deaths in Greater Manchester and across the UK.
More people than ever are donating their loved one's organs in the UK according to the Organ Donation and Transplantation Activity Report.
187 life changing transplants took place in Greater Manchester this year thanks to families donating their loved one's organs after their deaths.
However the NHS is pushing for more people to sign up to the donor list during Organ Donation week that starts today (Monday 5th September 2016)
This year their theme is "Turn an end, into a beginning" to persuade people to join the register or at least start having the conversation within their families.
More donors are requried in the country as only one percent of people out of the half a million who die each year, die in such circumstances that allow their organs to be transplanted.
Despite this four out of ten families still say no to donating their loved ones organs after they die resulting in people missing out on receiving the transplants they desperately need.
Last year 39 people in Greater Manchester died before they could receive a transplant from a suitable donor.
There are currently 352 people awaiting a transplant in the area, a third of which are from Black or Asian patients. The NHS is pushing to increase the number of ethnic donors as they currently only make up five percent of the donor register last year.
Sally Johnson, Director of Organ Donation and Transplantation at NHS Blood and Transplant said:
"We’re very grateful to every family in Greater Manchester who supported a relative’s decision to donate or who made the decision to donate on behalf of their relative last year. Quite simply, without them being willing to support donation more than 3,500 transplants couldn’t have taken place in the UK. Many families in Greater Manchester tell us they take huge comfort in knowing that their relative has saved the lives of others.
"We recognise that families are approached about organ donation at a difficult time, but with almost all of us prepared to take an organ if we need one, we need to be ready to donate too. Think about what we would want others to do for us if we ever need a transplant and be prepared to donate. Talking to your relatives about what you want is crucial as it is much more difficult to agree to donation when you don’t know what the patient would have wanted. There are 352 people in Greater Manchester waiting for a transplant now and they need people to agree to donate for them to get the organ transplant they so desperately need.
"It is especially important for people from our Black and Asian communities to talk about organ donation. I realise that this is a very difficult subject but there are many Black and Asian people who need a transplant. While some are able to receive an organ from a white donor, others will die if there is no donor from their own community."
For more information on how to become an organ donor, you can visit