Host of celebrities back the ‘We Need Everybody’ call

People across Scotland are being urged to make this year’s Organ Donation Week count by joining the NHS Organ Donor Register.

The call comes as new figures released today highlight that over 10,000 generous Scots showed their support for organ donation by joining the Register in July, a figure which continues to rise.

The surge of registrations over the four week period (04 July – 04 August 2016) was in response to the ‘We Need Everybody’ campaign which showed people baring almost all to highlight that anyone can be an organ donor.

However, with one person dying in the UK every day waiting on an organ transplant1, the more people that join the Register, the more lives that can be saved.

A host of celebrities, including Dougray Scott, John Hannah, Laura Fraser, The Proclaimers, Michelle McManus and Martin Compston, have backed the Week, encouraging Scots to think about their organ donation wishes.

Currently, 40.1 per cent of people living in NHS Forth Valley area are on the NHS Organ Donor Register2, but there are 540 people in Scotland still waiting on a life-saving transplant.
Increasing registrations is vital, as less than one per cent of deaths in Scotland happen in circumstances where the person is actually able to donate their organs3.

Dr Mark Worsley, Clinical Lead Organ Donation NHS Forth Valley, said:

“Every transplant transforms the life of the recipient, but without donors, there can be no transplants. Perhaps it’s not widely known, but each donor can provide up to seven organs for transplantation.

“Most of us would accept a donated organ if we needed one so it makes sense for us to be willing to join the organ donation register.”

Organ Donation Week runs from 5-11 September 2016. Visit weneedeverybody.org to join the NHS Organ Donor Register today.