Card scheme boosts tissue donations at Larbert hospital

Cornea donation in Forth Valley has doubled over the past year, thanks to a scheme devised by a doctor at Larbert’s Forth Valley Royal Hospital.
By The Newsroom
Published 31st Mar 2019, 12:02 BST
Updated 31st Mar 2019, 12:03 BST
Dr Macmillan (front) is pictured with (left to right) NHS Forth Valley Charge Nurse Kirsty Meikle, Alison Reed, NHS Forth Valley Tissue Donation Co-ordinator and NHS Forth Valley Staff Nurse, Ashleigh McAllister.Dr Macmillan (front) is pictured with (left to right) NHS Forth Valley Charge Nurse Kirsty Meikle, Alison Reed, NHS Forth Valley Tissue Donation Co-ordinator and NHS Forth Valley Staff Nurse, Ashleigh McAllister.
Dr Macmillan (front) is pictured with (left to right) NHS Forth Valley Charge Nurse Kirsty Meikle, Alison Reed, NHS Forth Valley Tissue Donation Co-ordinator and NHS Forth Valley Staff Nurse, Ashleigh McAllister.

Emergency Department staff have been issued with a reminder card which carries the criteria for tissue donation.

It tucks into the back of staff identification badges and was devised by NHS Forth Valley Clinical Development Fellow Dr Susan Macmillan, as part of a bid to increase the rate of tissue donation at the hospital.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Tissues that can be donated after death include corneas, heart valves, skin and tendons,

Dr Macmillan said: “When a patient passes away in the Department it is very important that we find out if they had expressed a wish in life to be a donor either to their family or by joining the Organ Donor Register.

“Honouring a patient’s wish to be a donor is ensuring that we are providing patient centred care even at the end of life.”

The increase in tissue donation is the result of a two year project which has also included Forth Valley Royal Hospital Emergency Department’s first ever Tissue Donation Week.

Dr Macmillan is now working with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service to develop materials which can be used in other Emergency Departments across Scotland.

Related topics:Forth Valley Royal HospitalEmergency Departments