BMA backs organ donation opt-out system

Published on 14/02/2013 12:00

AN opt-out system for organ donation would better reflect the views of most Scots, doctors’ leaders have said.

The British Medical Association (BMA) said it was time for a “serious debate” on the issue.

About 650 people in Scotland are currently on the waiting list for a transplant but some will die before they get the chance of a new organ.

Dr Sue Robertson, a renal physician and a member of the BMA’s Scottish Council, said: “All the time we waste now means that more lives will be lost.”

Edinburgh lung transplant patient Gill Hollis also backed a move to an opt-out system. “I wouldn’t be here today without my transplant. An opt-out system would mean that more people could have their lives saved and transformed,” she said.