This is an essay (485 words) on organ donations and transplants, specifically in The Netherlands; but could be used for any country really. It's about why organ donations should be made more accessible.
There are currently more than 1195 people on the Dutch waiting list for organ transplants. Some people who
are in desperate need of organ donations have to wait for over 4,5 years before they can receive the help they
need. In the Netherlands it is permitted to have an altruistic donation –which is a donated organ from a
complete stranger–, this is very modern in comparison to most other countries. But there is still room for further
improvement. We have to modernize organ donation.
Firstly, the world changes daily. We currently live in a social media age in which the old social
structures and morals are not always relevant anymore. People in need of an organ donation have the ability to
save themselves if the current medical system of organ transplants can not do that for them. If someone finds
themselves a donor, for example on Facebook or Change.org, why should we stop them from this? This will not
only make the waiting lists shorter, but it will also raise awareness through the internet on the subject of organ
donations and transplantations.
Furthermore, an open market for organ donations will eliminate the black market of organ
transplantations. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that when a person sells their kidney on the
black market it will sell for around $5,000. Because the demand for kidneys is high, brokers will be able to sell
the kidney for more than $150,000. And thus we see that people in poverty, who often have no other choice but
to sell their organs, get the short end of the stick. Those in need of organs get scammed and pay massive
amounts of money, those selling their organs get underpaid, and the brokers make easy money. An open market
for organs, however, would cause an increase in the supply of organs–since the medicalization of organ
transplantation will make more people consider donating their organs–, and the demand for organs will
decrease since more people will be able to receive help. The black market, which is a very exploitative one, will
be eliminated.
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