Culture Aspect of Human Organ Donation - Research Paper Example

?Culture aspect on human organ donation While organ donation is universally accepted as a procedure that helps in saving the life of many individuals, it has been seen that lack of available donors is a challenge in carrying out this life saving procedure. Hence, the demand for the organs is much higher that their availability. The main reasons due to which there is a lack of donors include lack of education, inefficient bodies for organ procurement, cultural, social and religious aspects. There are many reasons due to which there is lack of organ donors, and one of the most common reasons is the cultural aspect associated with the process. While there are no legal hurdles during the process of organ donation, there is a lot of skepticism among the potential donors. In countries like India and China, the main religions talk about the concept of rebirth and reincarnations. Hence, religious followers have developed a fear about donating the body parts after death (Woo, 1992). According to Daar (2000), in Islamic countries, the religion prevents the separation of organs from the body after death. However, a deep dive into the cultural traditions of these nations indicates that religion and culture are not actually against organ donation (Ogbonmwan, 2010). This study aims to identify the reasons that prevent people from organ donation and will try to find out if culture is one of the dominant factors that go behind the decision. The study is based on review of literature as well as the research undertaken on the topic of impact of culture on organ donation. The study will highlight the various insights through the review of literature and research about the way in which culture plays a role in making an impact on organ donation. Organ Donation, Culture and Religion The cultural aspect of organ donation is deeply influenced by the way in which culture influences religion. Hence, in most cases, the religious practices or beliefs have transpired as cultural beliefs. Here is a brief summary of what some of the major religious practices talk about the concept of organ donation. Islam and Organ Donation According to Islam, violating the human body is a forbidden concept but, at the same time, the concept of altruism forms a basic tenet of Islam. Hence, helping in saving the life is regarded as a noble concept. Therefore, based on this principle, many Muslim Law bodes have passed religious rulings that organ transplantation is entirely approved in Islam, such as by the UK Muslim Law body (Golmakani, 2005). According to Golmakani, the Islamic Jurisprudence Council of the Government of Saudi Arabia had approved both live as well as cadaver organ donation in 1988. Countries like Pakistan, Egypt and Iran had also passed similar rulings (Einollahi, 2008). As per the research done by Einollahi in 2008, he felt that scholars approved of organ donation and even Islamic laws were passed in approval. However, even then many followers are not comfortable with the idea of organ donation, especially when it comes to the procedure of deceased organ donation. Einollahi’s research shows that among all the kidney donations carried out in Iran, only 13% were deceased donation. In Turkey, Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, this figure was less than 25%. Hence, there is still some skepticism based on religion about organ donation. In addition, there is also some difference of opinion between the Indo-Asian Muslim scholars and the Arab scholars, where the Indo-Asian Muslim scholars are not much in favor of organ donation (Rady and Verheijde, 2009). Part of this concern could arrive from the norms for burial which states that the body should be buried within 24 hours, where as lengthy organ retrieval procedures may delay the norm (Gatrad, 1994). Therefore, while Islam as a religion does not have any prohibitions against Islam, followers are still apprehensive about the entire procedure. Christianity and Organ Donation Christianity as a religion endorses organ transplantation. The various branches of Christianity such as Anglican, Catholic and Protestant churches are of the opinion that the any form of organ donation shows selflessness from the individual and the family of the individual. The current Pope of the Catholic Church, Benedict XVI was in news sometime back because of the public announcement about his donor card. The Anglican church, in fact, moved one step ahead and announced that organ donation is a Christian duty (Cohen and Wight, 2007). The debate in Christianity is more about the system of consent and whether it is more apt to have an opt-in or opt-out system. The recent discussions in Christianity with regard to organ donation is of the belief that organ donation should be purely voluntary and the rights to decide it should be left with the individual and the family of individuals concerned. Therefore, as per Christianity, there are no religious connotations that prohibit the followers from donating their organs, whether in a live donation or a deceased donation. Christianity has the largest number of followers in the world. However, the fact that organ donation is still not very popular across the globe seems to indicate that the main reason could not be religious or cultural, but fact that there is not enough education as well as awareness about the procedure. In addition, another reason could be due to the lack of expert medical practitioners who are able to spread awareness about this issue ( ). Hinduism and Organ Donation One of the most prominent religions in South Asia is Hinduism. One of the basic tenets of Hinduism the concept of reincarnation of rebirth, where it is believed that the soul of every living being is transmigrated to their next life. The way in which next life would be is determined is based on the deeds in this life. According to Hinduism, every action has implications and organ donation can have a major implication in this life or in future lives. The belief is that donating any part of the body can be an obstruction in moving on to next life proves to be a major obstruction in organ donation. Hence, it is believed that organ donation can prove to be an obstruction to the attainment of Moksha or Nirvana. Some sceptics believe that when a recipient receives an organ from someone else, they may even acquire the characteristics of the donors because the soul of the donor would continue to live in the inner world. However, another tenet of Hinduism strongly upholds concept of Daan or donation that is selfless and it ranks third among the various virtuous acts or Niyamas. The Niyamas do not talk about the concept of physical integrity of body affecting the reincarnation. According to Hinduism, the concept of reincarnation is similar to how a person puts on a new set of clothes and takes of the old clothes. In the same way, the soul accepts new bodies after giving away the old one. The physical state of the body during this process of rebirth is immaterial. A look at the Hindu mythology in fact, reveals the organ transplantation can be considered to be acceptable. The Bhagvad Gita, one of the most famous scriptures of the Hindus talks about the body and soul, “..it is said that the soul is invisible.. knowing this, you should not grieve over the body.” There are no religious laws or rules that prevent the followers from donating their organs. Hence, there is an inherent dilemma between the concept of ‘Daan’ and organ donation affecting rebirth. This has thrown open the debate between the various scholars. While some of the scholars do not approve organ donation at all, there are some others who believe that individual discretion can be exercised when it comes to organ donation. The legal process also does not prove to be an obstruction. Hence, it is more of a cultural barrier and social construct that prevents more and more Hindus from donating their organs. However, with education, the concept is gaining popularity in countries like India. With increased awareness and education, many cultural barriers related to organ donation can be overcome. While efforts are on, it is evident that more efforts need to be carried out. Buddhism and Organ Donation Buddhism is a very popular religion in Asia, especially in the countries of Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Bhutan, Cambodia and the region of Tibet. While the central thought behind religion is same across various branches of Buddhism, there are many different traditions that exist across these branches. An eight-fold path related to virtues has a goal of overcoming any form of suffering or dukkha in Buddhism. In addition, Buddhism also believes in the concept of rebirth and considers every living being on earth as transitory. According to this religion, the death of a follower is an important process and therefore, should be treated with utmost care as well as respect. However, there is no strong indication about the physical integrity of the body after death (Tai, 2009). Therefore, similar to Hinduism, while there is no religious law or rule that forbids organ donation after death, the cultural barriers and the numerous interpretations of the religious tenets give out the impression that any form of organ donation can have an impact on the future life. However, in Buddhism, the concept of ‘brain death’ is controversial. The idea is that even if an individual is clinically brain dead, the spiritual consciousness is continues to exist in the body. Hence, it is not right to disturb the body because that may have an impact on the next birth. Therefore, while renal donation or deceased organ donation is acceptable, the notion of donating the organ while an individual is brain dead is not acceptable. Conclusion This study has revealed the various perspectives that different religions have towards the concept of organ donation. In addition, it also revealed that in most cases, the dilemma and conflict occurs because of the clash between religious concerns and altruism. While some religious scholars of Hinduism and Buddhism have some strong notions against organ donation, there are no laws or regulations that prohibit the followers from donating their organs. Another factor that came out strongly was that along with religious concerns, lack of proper awareness and education also is a very important factor that has contributed to a low rate of organ donation. Therefore, proper awareness as well as education can work towards overcoming the challenges that are caused due to cultural barriers. Read More