Organ Transplantation

Organ transplantation entails the transplantation of a body organ that has failed to work; the failing organ is replaced with one that is healthy from another individual. Organs that are mostly transplanted include the following ones: the liver, lungs, heart, pancreas, small intestines and the kidney. One or more body organs can be transplanted at a time, for instance, the lungs and heart transplant. Due to the increased occurrence of vital organ failure and insufficient supply of organs, there has been a wide gap between the organ supply and demand. This has resulted to patients waiting longer to receive an organ, and the number of deaths has increased. Such issues have raised diverse ethical and societal issues based on supply, process of an organ allotment, and the use of living donors as volunteers. Many entrepreneurs have practiced organs sale for financial gains in many parts of the world, exploiting the less fortunate in the society. The issue of advancement in immunology, tissue engineering, and use of animal organs has also created ethical and medical issues. The development of ethics of organ transplantation indicates amazing improvement in the history of medicine since it involves a doctor, the patient, and the donor. An organ is a valuable resource that if not used it is lost to a prospective beneficiary.

However, not everyone can undergo the process of organ transplant, for this reason, a test needs to be carried out to determine the best candidate and the possible donor (Hakim, 2012). People who are not good donors include those with infections, alcohol, or smoking problems for the lung and liver respectively or due to any other health problem. In the current day, organ transplants have proved to be more successful because of the advancing medical technology (Parr and Mize, 2001). The organ to be transplanted and the disease that has caused the precise organ to fail determine the success of an organ transplant.

Both the candidate and the donor need to be prepared for the organ transplant, the first step involves taking the blood tests with the donor. Once the transplant is successful, the patient needs to take care of their health by ensuring that they take the prescribed medicines, watch the diet, and take regular blood test (Uhrig, 2014). All the doctor’s directions ought to be followed for full recovery. It is advisable for the patient to see a psychologist, psychiatrist, or registered psychological health therapist regarding the transplant (Lovasik, 2011). It is also advisable to talk to anyone who has undergone through the same process of organ transplant. Following the doctor’s directions is the most important factor to consider so that your body does not reject the new organ.