Ethical considerations in organ donation

This week's New England Journal of Medicine includes a perspective piece by Dr. Robert Truong, "Consent for Organ Donation — Balancing Conflicting Ethical Obligations," addressing some of the ethical issues we briefly touched on in a previous JMLA case study about medical support of potential organ donors. Truong discusses potential conflicts between the clinical, the organ procurement organization (OPO), and the potential donor's family, and examines the process of informed consent for these patients and problems with how that process plays out in real life.

This NEJM issue also includes a reaction from one OPO, the New England Organ Bank, printed as a letter to the editor.