title: Predicting willingness to donate organs according to the demographic characteristics of the deceased's family.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Transplant professionals need to gain a better understanding of the factors that facilitate willingness to donate a family member's organs, in order to increase the rate of organ donation.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To conduct an integrated analysis of demographic data relating to key family members, so as to help transplant professionals predict the likelihood that family members would be willing to donate organs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Demographic variables were collected on 753 brain-dead patients and 995 first-degree relatives in 20 Israeli hospitals from 2004 to 2009. The data were recorded by transplant coordinators who used a uniform format to document meetings with next of kin. The data were analyzed by using the Chaid Statistical Test from the SPSS statistical package.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this total study population, the most significant factor affecting the decision to donate was religion. With increasing religiousness, the likelihood of consent decreased. A large disparity was apparent among Moslems, Christians, and Jews. Within the religious groups, education (Jews), familial proximity to the deceased (Christians and Moslems), and the quality of relationships with the medical staff (Moslems) were the main predictors of consent.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most countries have Christian, Moslem, and Jewish residents, so the conclusions of this study and its implications for practice should be relevant for transplant coordinators anywhere. The recommendations, which stem from the results of this study, relate to activities of transplant coordinators before and during their interaction with families, before the request for organ donation.
authors.affiliation: Israel Transplant Center, Ministry of Health, Jerusalem, Israel. a_tamar@netvision.net.il
authors.forename: Tamar
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ashkenazi
authors.forename: Moti
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001290:Attitude; D001926:Brain Death; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003657:Decision Making; D003710:Demography; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D012068:Religion and Medicine; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement