News of 28-05-2010
Number of donors in Croatia increased by 34%
European cooperation proofs to be effective
The Croatian Minister of Health and Social Welfare Darko Milinovic states: "Not only the number of donors in our country has risen dramatically, the quality of organ donation and transplantation has greatly improved". The Minister stresses the importance of European cooperation when it comes to organ donation and transplantation. "Since Croatia joined the Eurotransplant community in 2007 the number of donors increased by 33,9% and the number of transplanted organs by 31,2%."
On May 26, 2010, Croatia marked the National Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation Day as well as the three-year membership in Eurotransplant. In seven European countries Eurotransplant is responsible for the allocation of organs.
Increase
Since the first kidney transplant in 1971, much has been achieved in the field of transplantation medicine in Croatia. After Croatia joined Eurotransplant in 2007 the developments in the field of organ donation and transplantation moved rapidly. The number of transplantations increased by 31,2% and the waiting lists were reduced by 32,5%. The number of donors increased with 33,9% to 17.8 per 1 million inhabitants. The average within Eurotransplant is 15.6 per 1 million inhabitants. Croatia is one of the few countries within Eurotransplant where there is an increase in the number of donors in 2008.
Professionalization
The European cooperation however has not only a big impact on the figures. Joining the Eurotransplant community and thus meeting objective and high quality standards gave a significant boost to the quality of transplantation medicine and the enthusiasm of the medical professionals in the field of transplantation medicine. The whole process of donation and transplantation has been improved, investments have been done in training of transplantation teams, transplant coordinators, laboratories, new transportation procedures, ICT, and so on. Thanks to the efforts in Croatia on a national level and the possibility of sharing of expertise on a European level, an enormous professionalization has been achieved which has also been noticed by the public considering the increase of the number of donors.
Leiden, May 27, 2010
