ORGAN DONATION SHOULD BE CHOICE AND NOT LAW

It's estimated 2,000 people die every year waiting for organ transplants. To eliminate these deaths, a social ethics organization is proposing that a law be passed to require all Americans to donate their organs at death, unless the person or relative objects in advance. While the aim of saving lives is honorable, this approach is fundamentally flawed. Organ donation is a personal choice, and it should not become mandatory. Education, and not law, should drive increased donations.

The Communitarian Network claims that people should see organ donation "as a social duty ... that is to be routinely expected to reduce the wastage of a precious human resource." This national think tank believes society gives too much priority to individual rights and too little attention to individual responsibilities.

Our nation was built on the principles of individual rights. This foundation of freedom must remain solid. There are too many religious and ethical implications for the government to make this very personal decision for us.

That's not to say the notion of increased individual responsibilities is not valid. What a better place America would be if we all took time out of each day to attend to people in need.

But education remains the key to increasing these social responsibilities. More people will donate their organs if they understand the essence and necessity of their gift. Promotion is already making a difference, with record high organ and tissue procurement last year.

Mid-America Transplant Association which serves Missouri, southern Illinois and northeastern Arkansas procured 266 vital organs from 80 local donors in 1991 and imported another 119 organs from outside the region. The Mid-America Eye and Tissue Bank secured a record number of donations as well in 1991, including 141 soft bone tissue donors, 93 heart values and 560 eye donors.

But as organ donations have increased so has the need for organs. Much of that is due to advances in medical technology. These operations are no longer considered experimental. Most transplants have become very routine and successful operations.

Cornea transplants are done at both Cape Girardeau hospitals, and some donor bone materials are used in local orthopedic and neuro-surgeries. Organ transplants, however, are still done in major medical centers. Still, these are typically daily procedures.

The numbers reflect the great transplant needs. Nationally, about 25,000 Americans are waiting for a lifesaving organ. A single donor can do so much for so many people. One person can save or improve the lives of 40 to 50 people by donating up to seven vital organs: including the heart, both kidneys, both lungs, the liver and pancreas. The same donor can leave two eyes for corneal transplants, bone, soft tissues, heart valves and saphenous vein to benefit 30 to 40 others.

But the choice to give should remain an individual's. We must resist a society where Big Brother watches our every move and directs our lives. We should donate our organs because we want to, not because we have to.