The Action

Only 30% of people in Ireland carry organ cards. This fact unsettled the team, motivating them to do even more to show people that donating organs can be the difference between the life and death of a recipient.

The team focused their research on young people, and carried out an extensive survey, presenting their findings to the Irish Kidney Association. Very impressed with the initial findings, the Irish Kidney Association supported the national rollout of the survey, which meant over 2000 students from all across the country provided their opinions about this topic.

The team also spoke with:

• Elizabeth Bennet, whose son died tragically and whose organs were donated,
• Tony Gavigan, who had experience of being both a member of a donor family and a recipient and
• A teacher whose friend had received a lung transplant.

Speaking with ordinary people who had been directly affected by organ donation reminded the project team of why their project was so meaningful. Organ donation saves lives.

The project team developed an education pack so both teachers and students could make an informed decision about whether or not they should become organ donors.

The Impact

In 2014, the 3 Times More Likely pack was successfully sent to every school in Ireland during Organ Donor Awareness Week after an official launch by An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, TD. The pack was also endorsed by the Irish Kidney Association and is available online.

The project team not only developed their own understanding of organ donation, but created an educational resource which is now used at a national level. There is no doubt the team’s work has supported adults and teenagers to make decisions which will ultimately save lives.