Public attitude and accessibility concerning kidney donation card and living related donation in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The attitudes of a random sample of 753 Saudis and non-Saudis toward the kidney donation card and living related donation were examined using structured questionnaire. The mean age of the sample population was 30.7 years (SD +/- 11 years) and 36% were females. The majority were Saudis (87%) and 54% were married. Students and teachers represent the largest occupational groups and only 8.1% were illiterates. There was no significant difference between Saudis and non-Saudis regarding willingness to sign kidney donor cards. Only 18.25% of all age groups had already signed a kidney donor card, even though 52.7% of the respondents were willing to sign one. A significantly higher proportion (P<0.05) of those respondents were willing to sign one. A significantly higher proportion (P<0.05) of those below 30 years old were aware of kidney donor cards and were willing to sign one. The awareness and willingness were greater among male and married subjectS. As the level of education increased, the degree of awareness and inclination to sign a kidney donor card also increased (P<0.04). There was no differential effect of age, sex, marital status, nationality, occupation, and education on the willingness to donate kidneys during life. Of the total respondents, 42% were willing to sign a kidney donor card as well as to donate during life. Only 10.6% of the respondents were neither willing to sign a kidney donor card nor to donate during life.
Al-Shammari
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Department of Family and Community Medicine and Primary Health Care Clinics at the University Hospitals, King Saud University.