Molzahn A E
Faculty of Human and Social Development, University of Victoria, B.C.
Can Nurse. 1996 Oct;92(9):25-30.
At the end of 1994, 2,226 Canadians were waiting for organ transplants. Some of these people will die waiting for transplants; others will live with significant impairments in quality of life. Yet it has been estimated that if organ donations were obtained from just half of potential donors, enough transplantable organs would be available for all potential recipients. Why is there such a shortage of organs available for transplantation? The simple answer is that organ donations take place in only 10 to 14 per cent of brain deaths (the major potential source of transplantable tissue). But the more complex answer refers to the multitude of cultural, psychological, economic and practical factors that limit donations and transplantations.
1994年底，有2226名加拿大人在等待器官移植。这些人中有些会在等待移植的过程中死去；另一些人将在生活质量严重受损的情况下生存。然而，据估计，如果仅从一半的潜在捐赠者那里获取器官捐赠，就会有足够的可移植器官提供给所有潜在的接受者。为什么可用于移植的器官如此短缺呢？简单的答案是，器官捐赠仅发生在10%至14%的脑死亡案例中（可移植组织的主要潜在来源）。但更复杂的答案涉及到众多限制捐赠和移植的文化、心理、经济和实际因素。
