Digital Organ Donor Card launched

The Irish Kidney Association (IKA) has announced the launch of a new digital Organ Donor Card, now available to download to your Apple or Google Wallet.

This timely innovative development comes just three weeks after the Department of Health commenced Part 2 (Transplantation) of the Human Tissue Act, addressing the issue of consent for organ donation and highlighting the importance of sharing your wishes with your family.

You can now download your digital donor card from the Irish Kidney Association website at www.ika.ie/donorcard add it to your Apple or Google Wallet and use the sharing options within the process to let your family know your wishes and trigger that all important family conversation about organ donation.

Supporting the Digital Donor Card launch photocall at Beaumont Hospital today was Lana Devine (21), from Kells, Co Meath, who is currently undergoing three times weekly dialysis treatment at Beaumont Hospital.

Lana, who spends 3.5 hours per session at the hospital, travels from her home in Kells, Co Meath for each treatment.

Lana was born with bilateral kidney dysplasia received a kidney transplant when she was just 4 years old – a gift that allowed her to experience a childhood and most of her teenage years, something for which she and her family remain eternally grateful to the deceased donor who gave her that opportunity.

Lana attended the photocall alongside her mother, Emer Devine, who has been a constant source of support throughout Lana’s health journey.

Also present at the event were Laura Austin, CNM3, Transplant Coordinator, National Kidney Transplant Service, Beaumont Hospital, and Colin White, National Advocacy and Projects Manager, Irish Kidney Association.

Lana whose kidney transplant failed in 2023 said, “I feel incredibly fortunate to have received a kidney transplant, and I hope this digital donor card initiative helps others understand the importance of organ donation.”

“This new card will make it easier for people to show their support and potentially save and transform lives, just as mine was.”

Under Ireland’s new organ donation law, all adults will be considered potential organ donors unless they officially register their objection via the HSE Opt Out Register.

In the event that you are identified as a potential organ donor (Organ donation can only take place either after the declaration of death by neurologic criteria (brain death) or after asystole (circulatory death)) you need to be in an Intensive Care Unit, on a life support machine when your doctors declare you brain-stem dead), and you have not registered your objection, your family will be approached, and donation cannot proceed without their consent.

This is why it’s important to share your wishes with your family.

Having an Organ Donor Card, including the new digital version, or code 115 on your driver’s licence, acts as a clear reminder of your decision to consent to organ donation.

If you do opt out, your choice is recorded on the HSE’s register and your family will not be approached.

If you change your mind, the Opt Out Register is set up to allow you to remove your name if you reverse your decision.

Approximately 1% of people die in circumstances where organ donation is possible.

As of the latest figures reported by the Department of Health, over 670 people are currently on waiting lists for organ transplants in Ireland.

More than 80% of these are waiting for kidney transplants, while others are in urgent need of heart, lung, liver, or pancreas transplants.

The IKA’s new digital donor card is not only a convenient and secure way to carry a record of your willingness to donate, it is also a powerful symbol, conversation starter, and constant reminder of your commitment to saving lives.

The digital donor card does not serve as legal consent but it can be a meaningful prompt to your family, ensuring your wishes are respected.

“This isn’t just about convenience,” said Colin White, National Advocacy & Projects Manager, Irish Kidney Association.

“In now providing a digital Organ Donor Card, the Irish Kidney Association is embracing the latest technology that has become such an integral part of our daily lives.

“It’s about keeping organ donation front of mind and giving hope to those who are waiting for a second chance at life.”

The Irish Kidney Association, a registered charity which has been at the forefront of promoting organ donation since its founding in 1978, originally created the Kidney Donor Card in the same year.

This later evolved into the Organ Donor Card, for all organs.

Still in use today, it has always been an effective trigger to start a family conversation through its space for the signature of the next of kin.

With the addition of the new digital option, the Irish Kidney Association is making the organ donor card more accessible than ever and is encouraging the public to download it today.

You can now download your digital donor card from the Irish Kidney Association website www.ika.ie/donorcard and add it to your Apple or Google Wallet.

Organ donation is a life-saving gift, that offers renewed life and hope to the people,  and their families, who are waiting in uncertainty.