Undergraduate nursing students' attitudes towards organ donation: a survey in an Italian university

The Knowledge of Nursing Students About Organ Donation and the Effect of the Relevant Training on Their Knowledge

BACKGROUND

The positive attitude of nursing students toward organ donation will affect the number of transplantations to be performed in the future. This study was conducted to determine the knowledge of the students studying at Kafkas University Faculty of Health Sciences Nursing Department on organ donation and the effect of the relevant training on their knowledge.

METHOD

This study with a pretest-post-test design was completed with 352 nursing department students in the 2016-2017 academic year. A total of 45 minutes of structured training was provided to the students by a physician who was trained and experienced on organ transplantation. A pretest and post-test form was used to evaluate the knowledge of the students before and after the training, respectively. Data were analyzed by evaluating the numbers, percentages, and significance of the difference between 2 percentages in the SPSS 20 software.

RESULTS

The mean age of the students was 21.25 ± 1.89 years; 52% were male, 31.8% were first-year students. We found that a relative of 6.5% of the students was waiting for an organ and the ethnic identity did not affect the decision of organ donation in 69.9%. When asked about who could be organ donors, 71.9% of the students answered as cadaver and living donors where blood and tissues were found to be a match, 33.5% as the first-degree relatives of the patient, and 18.5% as cadaver donors. Head trauma-related brain death was the most common answer to "In which case can organs be taken?" at 75.9%. The percentage of students stating that the donor can donate his or her organs in accordance with the law while he or she is healthy and that organ donation can be made with the consent of the family after death was 67.9%. We found that the students' wish to donate their organs and their knowledge on where and how to make an organ donation and how to get official approval increased significantly as a result of this training in addition to the number of those who had no reservations regarding brain death.

CONCLUSION

We recommend providing nursing students regular training on organ donation with various training methods and conducting further studies on the subject.

Narrative review on attitudes toward organ donation of undergraduate nurse students

AIM

We aimed at obtaining suggestions to increase the number of organ donations by conducting a meta-analysis of researches on attitudes toward organ donation for nurse undergraduates around the world.

METHODS

We looked for documents published by April 2017 using CINAHL, MEDLINE, Japan Medical Abstract Society, CiNii, and PsycINFO. We searched for English and Japanese literature including all terms of "attitude", "students", "nursing", "Tissue and Organ Procurement", "organ donation". This study was carried out based on the Prisma Statement 2010.

RESULTS

As a result of the search, six CINAHLs, 45 MEDLINEs, seven Japan Medical Abstract Society articles were extracted, but no papers from CiNii and PsycINFO. We extracted and analyzed 21 original papers including contents of organ donation, targeting nurse undergraduates, which also excluding scale development.

Theology and Nursing Students' Knowledge of Organ Donation and Transplantation

INTRODUCTION

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the knowledge level of nursing and theology students, who will deliver health care and religious services in the future, about organ donation.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted with 578 university students at Firat University Faculty of Health Science Nursing Department and Faculty of Theology.

RESULTS

Of the participants, 49.3% were nursing students and 50.7% were theology students. Although 3.8% of the students stated that a family member had donated an organ, only 0.5% of all students had a donation card. Among the nursing students, 34.4% stated that they had no reason for not having a donation card and that they might donate in the future. Among the theology students, the rate was 27.3%. In terms of reasons for wishing to be an organ donor, religious beliefs were more important to theology students than to nursing students (18.4% and 16.1%, respectively). The nursing students' total score on the Organ-Tissue Donation and Transplantation Knowledge Scale was significantly higher than that of the theology students (P < .05).

CONCLUSIONS

Although the current level of knowledge of nursing and theology students about organ donation and transplantation was adequate, the rate of organ donation was low. Therefore, not only health care professionals, but also religious officials have important roles to play in increasing the organ donation rate. Removing existing barriers to organ donation is important to resolve the current organ donation shortage in Turkey.

Interaction Effects of Religiosity Level on the Relationship between Religion and Willingness to Donate Organs

This study aims to investigate the interaction effect of religiosity level on the relationship between religion and willingness to donate organs. Prior studies have suggested that a high level of religiosity indicates a high level of willingness to donate organs. However, these previous works ignore the interaction effect of the level of religiosity and the doctrinal characteristics of each religion regarding one’s own body preservation. Organ donation is an act of transplanting part of one’s own body after death to another person and is influenced by the viewpoint of the post-mortem world and the attitude toward the preservation of the body. Therefore, this study analyzes the effects of religious characteristics and belief levels on the relationship between religion and organ donation. Results show that Christianity, such as Catholicism and Protestantism, positively affects the willingness to donate organs as compared with Buddhism. Religiosity level also exerts an interaction effect that strengthens the relationship between Christianity and willingness to donate organs.

Knowledge and Attitudes Toward Organ Donation in Health Care Undergraduate Students in Italy

INTRODUCTION

The number of organ donors in Italy is increasing, but with still disappointing living donation activity and relatively frequent objection by potential deceased donors' relatives to organ recovery. Few studies have assessed health care students' knowledge and attitude on donation.

METHODS

We administered a questionnaire to medical (MS) and nursing students (NS) at University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy, and 749 students (406 MS and 343 NS) completed the questionnaire.

RESULTS

Although 95% of students were in favor of donation, only 21.9% of NS and 24.9% of MS were registered as donors. One quarter of students reported family disagreement. MS appeared more confident with personnel involved in donation. Overall, 60% of students knew the term donation after brain death but only 40% were aware of the criteria used to define it. Barely 27.1% of NS and 15.3% of MS believed they had received sufficient information in lessons. Backward logistic regression demonstrated that students whose families agree with them and who knew the definition of donation after brain death were more likely to express the disposition of registering, and those who showed distrust in the declaration of brain death were half as likely to register as donors.

DISCUSSION

Students expressed a lack of knowledge, controversial attitudes on donation, and strong need for education; increased awareness may help increase donation rates. The majority of educational institutions in Italy do not directly address training on organ donation and transplantation for health care students; an integrated curriculum favoring interpersonal discussion including practical aspects is urgently required.

Effects of Peer Education on Attitudes Toward Organ Donation in Nursing Students

BACKGROUND

Nurses play an effective role in the identification of donors and in the families' decision-making processes related to organ donation. It is recommended that nursing students be offered specific education regarding organ donation and transplantation. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of peer education on attitudes toward organ donation and the rate of attaining a donor card in undergraduate nursing students.

METHODS

This study was a quasi-experimental trial in a single group conducted between February 2016 and October 2016. Data were collected in 3 stages (pretest, posttest 1, and posttest 2) by using the Organ Donation Attitudes Scale. Data analysis was made with descriptive statistics, repeated measures analysis of variance, and the McNemar test.

RESULTS

The mean age of the participants was 21.63 ± 1.19 years. There was no statistically significant difference in students' attitudes toward organ donation after peer education (P > .05). The difference in the number of students having a donor card after peer education was highly significant (P < .05).

CONCLUSIONS

These study results showed that peer training did not positively change nursing students' attitudes toward organ donation but encouraged them to acquire a donor card and increased their knowledge of the organ donation system.

Opposition to organ donation and transplant by midwifery, nursing, and social work students

OBJECTIVES

This study sought to determine the individual and social factors of students enrolled in undergraduate programs of midwifery, nursing, and social work, regarding their negative attitudes on organ donation and transplant.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This was descriptive research, consisting of 29 first- and second-year students from the departments of midwifery, nursing, and social work at the Kocaeli School of Health, Kocaeli University, in Kocaeli, Turkey, who expressed that they were opposed to organ donation and transplant. Data were collected in June 2012 during focus group discussions with a semistructured questionnaire and analyzed by thematic content analysis.

RESULTS

Regarding negative attitudes toward organ donation and transplant, 7 themes were identified: fear, lack of knowledge, religious belief, loss of bodily integrity, the degree of recipient relationship, the decision 's effect on the family, and fulfilment of certain criteria for a recipient.

CONCLUSIONS

The study shows that the most important determinants of students' negative attitudes regarding organ donation and transplant are fear, lack of knowledge, and religious beliefs. Adding courses to the undergraduate curricula of midwifery, nursing, and social work programs about organ donation and transplant would increase these students ' knowledge.

Impact of Organ Donation Education on US Undergraduate Nursing Students

Experts advocate educational programs addressing misinformation regarding donation decisions to increase the potential donor pool. However, few researchers have measured outcomes with nursing students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of an educational intervention on nursing students' knowledge, attitudes, registering as an organ donor, and family discussions. This quasi-experimental study used a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The research group consisted of 42 volunteers and the control group consisted of 73 volunteers. The written survey included 15 true-false knowledge items and 8 Likert items asking about attitude toward donation, registering as an organ donor, and family discussion. Normally distributed data showed no significant differences between groups on the pretest. The research group had no change in knowledge level 3 months later, but the control group had a significantly decreased knowledge level at that point. More members of the research group than the control group registered as organ donors after the intervention (χ2 = 4.5, P = .03). The control group had no change in registering as an organ donor between the pretest and posttest. Family discussions did not differ significantly from pretest to posttest in either group. One lecture/laboratory experience did make a difference in registering as an organ donor but not in discussing the decision with family members. Students can learn about organ donation from more than one specific class. Recommendations for educators and future research are provided.

Pro-donation behaviours of nursing students from the four countries of the UK

BACKGROUND

The effectiveness of the organ donation system depends on the health professionals involved in procurement and in dealing with donors and their families. Concerns about lack of knowledge and experience of organ donation have been expressed among such professionals but there is a paucity of literature to indicate the basis of such concerns and where knowledge may be lacking. Given that regional variations in organ donation rates exist in the UK, this study investigates knowledge about and attitudes towards organ donation among student nurses in different countries of the UK and examines regional variations.

METHODS

A questionnaire was distributed to 667 student nurses (female:male = 582∶85) aged 18 to 50 years (mean [SD] 25.4 [7.1] years) recruited from a total of five Universities (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, England) during the period of January to September 2011.

RESULTS

Registration behaviour among participants was shown to vary depending upon many different factors that include birthplace, residency, fear of death and concerns of medical distrust.

CONCLUSIONS

Regional variations in organ donation behaviour in the UK were found in the cohorts of student nurses who participated in this study. These variations include willingness to register and to donate specific body parts and not others. The relationship between attitude and behaviour and how this may influence the decision making process of organ donation, as well as the underlying factors that result in regional variations, require further investigation.

Organ donation knowledge and attitudes among health science students in Greece: emerging interprofessional needs

BACKGROUND

The impact of presumed consent on donation rates has been widely debated. In June 2013 Greece adopted a 'soft' presumed consent law for organ and tissue donation, where relatives' approval is sought prior to organ removal.

AIMS

To report on the knowledge, attitudes and concerns of undergraduate students, enrolled in three health science disciplines, in regards to organ donation and presumed consent.

METHODS

Undergraduate junior and senior health science students [medical (MS), nursing (NS) and medical laboratory students (MLS)] were recruited from higher education settings in Thessaly, Greece. Dichotomous questions, previously used, were adopted to assess knowledge, attitudes and concerns towards organ donation, together with questions regarding the recent presumed consent legislation.

RESULTS

Three hundred seventy-one out of 510 students participated in the study (response rate: 72.7%). Only 3.6% of NS, 8.7% of MS and 3.2% of MLS carried a donor card. Although over 78% in all groups knew that it was possible to leave kidneys for transplant after death, only 10% to 39% considered themselves well-informed. NS were more likely to consider opting-out (21.5%), followed by MLS (17.9%) and MS (10.9%). Respondents were more likely to refuse organ removal upon death when expressing one of the following views: a) opposing a system making it lawful to take kidneys from an adult who has just died, unless forbidden while alive [Odds ratio (OR) 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 2.96 (1.48-5.93), p=0.002], b) worrying about their kidneys being removed after death [OR, 95% CI: 3.37 (1.75-6.49), p=<0.001] and c) believing that an intact body was needed after death [OR, 95% CI: 4.23 (2.15-8.31), p<0.001].

CONCLUSION

Health science students, soon to become healthcare professionals, demonstrated limited awareness in regards to the newly reformed organ donation system. Identified knowledge deficits and concerns could have far-reaching implications in terms of conveying a clear message and shaping the public's stand. The feasibility and effectiveness of a joint inter-professional curriculum on organ and tissue donation issues across all three health science disciplines, addressing common themes and concerns deserves further study.