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. 2024 Feb 1;22(2):195-233.
doi: 10.11124/JBIES-22-00140.

Organ donation following medical assistance in dying, Part II: a scoping review of existing processes and procedures

Vanessa Silva E Silva  1 , Amina Regina Silva  2 , Andrea Rochon  3 , Ken Lotherington  4 , Laura Hornby  4 , Tineke Wind  5 , Jan Bollen  6 , Lindsay C Wilson  4 , Aimee J Sarti  7 , Sonny Dhanani  8
Affiliations

Organ donation following medical assistance in dying, Part II: a scoping review of existing processes and procedures

Vanessa Silva E Silva et al. JBI Evid Synth. .

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this review was to collate and summarize the current literature on what is known about organ donation following medical assistance in dying (MAiD). For this second part of a 2-part scoping review, the focus is on the existing procedures and processes for organ donation following MAiD.

Introduction: Organ donation following MAiD is a novel and contentious issue worldwide. To give direction for future research and initiatives, a comprehensive understanding of the available evidence of existing procedures and processes for organ donation following MAiD is needed.

Inclusion criteria: For this review, the population of interest included all individuals who underwent organ donation following MAiD; the concept was defined as procedures and processes involved in organ donation after MAiD; and the context was reports of organ donation following MAiD at home or in any health care setting worldwide. We considered quantitative and qualitative studies, text and opinion papers, gray literature, and unpublished material provided by stakeholders.

Methods: This scoping review was conducted in line with JBI methodology. Published studies were retrieved from MEDLINE (Ovid), Embase (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), PsycINFO (Ovid), Web of Science Core Collection, and Academic Search Complete (EBSCOhost). Gray and unpublished literature included reports from websites and organ donation organizations in Canada, Belgium, and The Netherlands. Two independent reviewers screened all reports (both title and abstract, and full text) against the predetermined inclusion criteria, extracted data, and completed a content analysis. Any disagreements between the 2 reviewers were resolved through discussion or with another reviewer.

Results: We included 121 documents across parts I and II, and we report on 107 documents in this second part. The majority of the 107 documents were discussion papers, published in English, and in Canada from 2019 to 2021. In the content analysis, we identified 5 major categories regarding existing procedures and processes of organ donation following MAiD: i) clinical pathways for organ donation following MAiD; ii) organ donation following MAiD and the donor; iii) clinical practice tools for organ donation following MAiD; iv) education and support for health care providers involved in organ donation following MAiD; and v) health care providers' roles and perceptions during organ donation following MAiD.

Conclusions: Findings from this review can be used to provide support and guidance for improvements in procedures and processes, as well as a rich resource for countries currently planning to establish programs for organ donation after MAiD.

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Conflict of interest statement

VSS, ARS, and AR received salaries from Canadian Blood Services to conduct this review. LH is a paid research consultant for Canadian Blood Services. KL and LCW are Canadian Blood Services employees. The other authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Search results and source selection and inclusion process
Figure 2
Figure 2
Scoping review findings on organ donation following medical assistance in dying, and the division into 2 parts: i) legal and ethical aspects, and ii) processes and procedures
Figure 3
Figure 3
Clinical pathway of organ donation after medical assistance in dying in the hospital
Figure 4
Figure 4
Clinical pathway of organ donation after medical assistance in dying at home (without death at home)
Figure 5
Figure 5
Clinical pathway of organ donation after medical assistance in dying at home (with death at home)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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