Organ Donation: Willingness, Attitude, and Knowledge among General Population of Western India – A Cross-sectional Study

Background: The issue of organ donation is complex and multifactorial involving ethical, legal, medical, organizational, and societal factors. There is a wide gap between the required number of donations and actual donations in India. There is a need to identify the reasons for this wide gap from the community perspective. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done among relatives of patients attending the outpatient department at a tertiary care center. Data were collected using a pre-designed semi-structured questionnaire. For the assessment of knowledge, relevant questions were asked. Attitude toward organ donation was assessed using 22 items on a 5-point Likert scale. Data were entered into Excel sheet and analyzed using SPSS software. Average knowledge, attitude, and practice scores were calculated and compared with religion, gender, and other sociodemographic variables. A Chi-square test of association was applied between sociodemographic variables and their willingness to sign the donor card. P <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Their suggestions for improving organ donation practices were also documented. Results: The average knowledge score among participants was 8.06. Good, average, and poor attitude toward organ donation were found among 3 (0.77%), 339 (87.37%), and 46 (11.86%) participants, respectively. Good, average, and poor practice toward organ donation were observed among 1 (0.26%), 65 (16.75%), and 322 (82.98%) participants, respectively. Discussion: When deciding whom to donate their organs, 156 (40.21%) said that the health status of the recipient and his/her chances of survival will be the most important factor. Age and poor health status were the major barriers toward organ donation among participants. Still, many participant’s motivation toward organ donation was that they want to help others and 190 (49.0%) participants were willing to be part of awareness group and promote organ donation activity in the society. Solving their barriers/reasons for refusing organ donation may help to improve organ donation in the society. Conclusion: Knowledge has an impact on changing person’s attitude and practice; even our study has shown significant results of association between knowledge and attitude, knowledge and practice as well as attitude to their practice toward organ donation. Age and poor health status were the major barriers toward organ donation among participants.