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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1985-04-03, Page 7Dr. Calvin Stiller Dr. Calvin Stiller, of University Hospital, London told a crowd of 250 people at North Street United Church last Tuesday that peo- ple who need organ transplants continue to die because of a lack of donors. He also blamed the medical system which does not ' actively seek donors. (Hundertmark photo) Something for everyone! diErE ATIiEj and FIJq PET SHOP AT tRSMITH'SFARM & GAROEN CENTRE 82 SOUTH STREET- 0 TREETP �A _ GODERICH PHONE 524.9522 Complete line of 0c's"t, PET SUPPLIES •TROPICAL FISH•GERBILS•HAMSTERS •CANARIES•BUDGIES•BIRDS FROM THE TROPICS AND MORE the ideal way 10 keep within your budget. There are two, actually. One, never leave the house. Or two, buy your insurance from The Dominion and .use The Ideal Monthly Payment Plan. It lets you pay for your car or home insurance in 12 monthly instalments. With absolutely no carrying charges. 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But, when a l0 -year-old boy named Jason died after he was hit by a car, he went to his grave with his organs intact. No one asked his mother if she would be willing to donate them. Despite a. need for 1000 donors every year in Canada, only 300 to 358 organs are donated every year, Dr. Calvin Stiller, chief of multiorgan transplant service at University Hospital, London told close to 250 people at the North Street United Church on Tuesday evening. ~Since the discovery of cyclosporin in 1976, doctors were able to turn off the body's immune system and offer the possibility of a neworgan to those dying of a single organ deficiency. Before then, almost every transplantation failed because doctors had no way of overcoming the rejection of the organ by the body's immune system. In order to suppress it, cortisone was given to make the whole body so sick, the body would need the new organ to survive. Cyclosporin became the penicillin of transplantation. But, without an informed public who ex- pects organs are going to be used to extend the lives of others, and without. a medical FEATURE REPORT system that makes an effort to retrieve organs, people continue to die without the chance at transplantation, he says. "If there was an infectious disease kill- ing several hundreds of Canadians every year for which the vaccine was developed and if the vaccine was never reaching the individuals whoneeded it, it would be a na- tional disgrace," says Dr. Stiller. "Every level of government would make sure the individuals were getting the vaccine. And, they would send agencies to check that it was being done. We have a similar situation with transplants but nothing is being done." Since 1972 and the Human Tissues Gift Act; people have had the opportunity to donate their organs by signing their driver's licences. While two per cent sign- ed their licences four years ago, 26 per cent signed them last fall. "But, in my experience, we're not seeing any donors from driver's licences," says Dr. Stiller. In surveys of the public, 62 per cent said they would be prepared to let their organs be used if they were asked and 88 per cent said they would let the organs of their lov- ed ones or children be used. "There's a difference between commit- ment and interest. If you make people face their own deaths, a number will fall out; they don't want to think about death. Though 36 per cent are needed to fill the need for donated organs, only 12 per cent of organs are obtained. "We thought the reason we weren't get- ting donors .was because theublic didn't agree with it but we've found that's not the case. The block in the system isn't the charity, love, responsibility and altruism of the public but the medical system's pro- blem. We're not short of donors; we're short of seekers." Part of the problem is the emotional response of physicians to death. Every time a patient dies, a doctor faces personal failure, grief and guilt about the" "what ifs" he discovers when he thinks over the case in the post mortem. When death is inevitable, the doctor tries to make the death as painlessand precise as possible, hands over the process to a minister or social worker and goes on to the next patient who is going to live. If the person who is dying is to become . an organ donor, the doctor must change his thinking before the death process begins and must talk about the possibility of donation to the family when they are in the midst of grief. When the brain dies, the doctor must keep the body as healthy as possible so that the orcans can be used. "There is no reward to the system but there is the reward that you would give life to those who would ,otherwise die. Donating contributes a sense of continuity to the loved ones you leave behind and leaves a hopeless situation of death with some meaning," says Dr. Stiller. Right 'now, the system is based on the chance that someone would have an acci- dent, be under the care of someone think- ing about organ donation, that someone competent would he there to take the organ and that the parents would be there to give the permission. "We want to take the luck out of the system so the needs of the sick can be met while people can express their love,' chari- ty and altruism by donating." Individuals can help by expecting to be asked to donate and pledging to give their organs wheh they're asked. They can also talk to their families so they'll be informed about the situation when the time comes to donate. "Try to make organ donations as normal as giving a hand to someone who needs help," says Dr,. Stiller. "My wife says I'll come back and haunt her if she doesn't make sure my organs are donated." "We've got to have a committed public and a committed medical profession if we want a system where expressions of chari- ty can be preserved." Martins say Paulette's death increased awareness Although seven -month-old Paulette Mar- tin, of RR5 Kincardine died a few weeks ago because a liver did not become available for a transplant, she made peo-' ple aware of the need for organ donors, her parents said at a meeting Tuesday evening focussing on organ transplantation. Her parents, Peter and Louise Martin spoke to a crowd of close to 250 at North Street United Church along with the main speaker, Dr. Calvin Stiller, chief of multiorgan transplant service at Universi- ty Hospital, London. "Paulette opened a lot of people's eyes to the need for donors. She served her pur- pose in her short life," said Mrs. Martin. Although Paulette was put on a priority list, which means that she would be the first. to receive a liver if one was found anywhere in North America, she died before one was found, a fact Mrs. Martin said has been hard to accept. "In my reading, I've found that in the U.S. alone, 10,000 babies die of crib death a year. Could there not have been one liver available in.all those deaths?" she asked. The fact that somewhere a child must die if your child is to live is a difficult one :to realize. "We didn't like to face it but it's life," she said The possibility of organ transplantation gave the Martins a definite hope. "It gave us courage and strength to face something quite difficult." But, with the situation right now, many people have to wait until they're desperately ill before an organ becomes available so their chances of even surviv- ing surgery become slim. "We want to ensure that others have the hope for their child to live. 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