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Organ donation

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I haven't made up my mind yet about how I feel about organ donation but I think it would be easier for your family if a doctor doesn't have to ask them to make a dicision. So I would like to hear how you feel about it. Are you an organ donor? Why? I hope to see this issue from a perspective I would not have considered myself.
Fez: I am so excited about Star Whores.
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My wife and I would donate anything but our eyes (she has an issue with that).

If you want to be an organ donor, don't watch "Meaning of Life".

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: Sadly, I believe the prequels are beyond repair.
<span class=“Bold”>JediRandy: They’re certainly beyond any repair you’re capable of making.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>MeBeJedi: You aren’t one of us.
<span class=“Bold”>Go-Mer-Tonic: I can’t say I find that very disappointing.</span></span>

<span class=“Italics”>JediRandy: I won’t suck as much as a fan edit.</span>

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I'm not. My dad was. When he died, the doctors tried to just take all of his organs that might be used in transplants, regardless of whether they were going to be useful or not. They were just going to figure it out after they got them out. My mom overheard the doctors jovially joking about this. She stopped them from taking everything, and I think she let them take his heart because they knew it was healthy and it could be used for a transplant.

The business of death seriously, seriously freaks me out and I want to stay as far away from it as possible.

I used to be very active on this forum. I’m not really anymore. Sometimes, people still want to get in touch with me about something, and that is great! If that describes you, please email me at [my username]ATgmailDOTcom.

Hi everybody. You’re all awesome. Keep up the good work.

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I work at a funeral home, so I know quite a lot about this subject. By and large it's a good thing, but there are unfortunate things that go along with it. First off, the organ and tissue donation companies can be shady, and their technicians are typically under-trained. If you look at their websites and other literature, they leave out some pertinent information. Most people think that if they donate their heart, that the doctors just gently open them up, remove the organ, and them sew them up so that nobody could ever tell something was removed. Most of the time, after the organ and tissue companies come through, the body is left in scraps. Gross, huh? The issue I deal with is that the family of the deceased often is never told this is what happens when someone donates their tissues and organs, and they are expecting to have a viewing and/or open casket funeral. Secondly, there are inherent time and resource implications in the funeral industry. If it takes a whole crew of funeral directors 10 hours to put humpty dumpty back together, that is time and resources taken away from other families and services.

I still am an organ donor, though. If I'm dead, and I can somehow make somebody else's life more enjoyable, then I'm all for it.
40,000 million notches away
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If you want to be an organ donor, don't watch "Meaning of Life".
I have that movie but I can't recall anything concerning organ donors...

I'm not. My dad was. When he died, the doctors tried to just take all of his organs that might be used in transplants, regardless of whether they were going to be useful or not. They were just going to figure it out after they got them out. My mom overheard the doctors jovially joking about this. She stopped them from taking everything, and I think she let them take his heart because they knew it was healthy and it could be used for a transplant.

Wow, that must have been extremely difficult for your mom. I know doctors sometimes joke about horrible things as a way to deal with death they face every day but I doubt that's the case here.

Most of the time, after the organ and tissue companies come through, the body is left in scraps.

Are you serious? The family receives a heap of flesh? How long can it take to sow the body up? They do that after an autopsy, right? So why can't they do that for someone who has just donated his organs so other people can live?

Fez: I am so excited about Star Whores.
Hyde: Fezzy, man, it's Star Wars.
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Well, the family doesn't receive the "scraps", but rather the funeral home does (that's where the "donating" takes place). The family doesn't get to see the person in this state. My point was just that the organ donation companies don't tell the families that this happens, and instead lead the families to believe that their loved one will look exactly the same after the donation as before, which many times is false. Again, this doesn't always happen, but it certainly occurs from time to time if people aren't careful. As for autopsies, while they can be very invasive at times (especially if the body is a small child), the M.E.'s who do them are extremely qualified and have had years and years of experience, whereas the organ donation technicians don't even need a bachelor's degree and conduct the harvesting of said organs and tissues rather haphazardly. Also, you have to realize that an autopsy is just a procedure to find cause of death, so if the M.E. suspects that the heart was the problem, everything else is left alone. Organ procurement agencies will take EVERYTHING they are allowed to. A few months ago, we had a company who took over 60% of this dead woman's skin, including that on her arms, legs, and back.
40,000 million notches away
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I would donate my organs when/if I die. No question about. It's not like I'm going to use them anytime soon when I'm gone.
"The ability to speak does not make you intelligent."
Qui-Gon Jinn (R.I.P.)