David Hookes Foundation urges Australians to register for tissue donation

With nearly 2,000 Australians waiting to receive life-saving organ and tissue donations, the David Hookes Foundation and Australians Donate has launched an awareness campaign appealing to the Australian public to sign up and save lives.

David Hookes Foundation director, Robyn Hookes, said that while many people understand the importance of organ donation, very few are aware that tissue was also in extremely short supply.

“Most Australians don’t realise that donated tissue such as skin, bone, corneas and heart valves can also dramatically improve the quality of life for recipients, and even save lives,” Mrs Hookes said.

Australia has one of the lowest rates of organ and tissue donation in the western world. Last year there were 202 donors in Australia, which is less than 10 donors per million of the population but research shows Australians are, on average, 20 times more likely to require a transplant than they are to become an organ or tissue donor.

One in five people currently waiting for an organ or tissue donation will die before a suitable donor is found.

The tissue donation awareness campaign will target GPs, medical specialists, nursing homes and funeral parlours and will appeal for new donors to help save Australians desperately in need of donor tissue.