Transplant law success hinges on cultural shift – senator

A new organ transplant law will only succeed if Barbados confronts deep-rooted religious and cultural resistance to donation, independent senator and internal medicine expert Dr Kenneth Connell has warned, urging sustained public education, stronger hospital resources and improved patient care at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

As the Human Tissue Transplant Bill came before Senate lawmakers, Senator Connell urged  Barbadians to move away from a mindset that stands in the way of saving lives.

“We now have to change our entire culture,” Dr Connell said. “How do we change that culture so that the average Barbadian citizen doesn’t see this as an act against God, but sees this as the ultimate act of giving?”

He recalled hearing a dying relative say she wanted to go back to her Maker exactly how she came. “This speaks to our religious background,” he noted, adding that the country must now evolve past this line of thinking.

While strongly supporting the legislation, Senator Connell said Barbados is right to start with an “opt-in” system, where citizens must give explicit consent to donate. He compared it with the United Kingdom’s “opt-out” system, noting that Barbados needs time for public education before making such a major leap.

“You can’t bring a new legislation… and say, oh, by the way, from tomorrow, by default, every single Barbadian citizen must opt out,” he said. “Many of us will rush and say: ‘Well, I ain’t ready for this yet.'”

Senator Connell, a UWI medical educator, praised the university’s role in healthcare, revealing that nearly 20 per cent of consultants at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) are full-time UWI faculty.

But he warned that the law will fail without proper resources. He pointed out that Barbados currently has only one transplant surgeon and desperately needs more kidney specialists to tackle the heavy burden of chronic lifestyle diseases.

The senator also called for immediate changes to improve patient dignity at the QEH, criticising the lack of privacy for those waiting for treatment.

“Think about the impact that has on the 27-year-old who must sit on the bench waiting to enter the dialysis unit with all of his friends seeing him,” Senalor Connell urged. He called for a private, air-conditioned lounge for these patients.

He also criticised the hospital’s environment, pointing out that vending machines filled with sugary, carbonated drinks are located directly next to the dialysis unit.

“The hospital is a health space,” Dr Connell stated. “And if we can’t get this one space right, then how do we speak to the wider environment?”

Despite what he described as gaps in the bill – including the need for stronger cybersecurity for the donor registry and faster legal approvals for extracting organs – the independent senator urged his medical colleagues to back the law.

“See this bill as a starting point and not the end or destination.” 

(RR)