More than 1,200 Belgians waiting for an organ donation

Belgium ranks second in Europe, after Croatia, in terms of organ donation numbers. And yet there are still 1,276 Belgians on the waiting list for an organ transplant. The FPS Public Health has therefore launched the 10th edition of Beldonor, a major organ donation awareness campaign, writes De Standaard.

Belgium's good score when it comes to organ donation is thanks to its legislation, says Christiaan Decoster, director general of healthcare. "In Belgium there is 'implied consent', which means that everyone is an organ donor unless he or she explicitly asks not to be. Nevertheless, demand continues to exceed supply. That's why we launched Beldonor.”

Residents of Belgium can also officially register as organ donor with their local commune. "In 2014 for the first time, the number of registered donors exceeded the number of exemptions,” organ specialist Luc Colenbie told De Standaard.

Currently there are 221,384 officially registered organ donors in Belgium, and 188,435 people who refuse to donate their organs. The number of donors increased in September by 5.5% compared to a year earlier, and the number of transplants increased by 4.5%. But there are still 1,276 patients on the waiting list, an increase of 7% compared to last year.