Organ Shortage: Ethics, Law and Pragmatism: 13 (Cambridge Law, Medicine and Ethics, Series Number 13) - Tapa dura

'Organ Shortage is a work of the highest standard, providing erudite, considered, and thought-provoking contributions. The care with which the editors have constructed the volume to ensure that it constitutes a coherent whole is evident.' Deborah Bowman, Journal of the American Medical Association

'... [this] book gives a solid introduction to the broad issue of organ shortage and may be inspiring to researchers, policymakers, and ethicists alike. The numerous authors introduce a variety of viewpoints on highly relevant debates, without dwelling excessively on a singular facet of organ donation or a specific organ. Indeed, in order to find a solution to the shortage, policies in the UK and elsewhere will need to be similarly balanced.' Maggie Woodward, World Medical and Health Policy

Organ shortage is an ongoing problem in many countries. The needless death and suffering which have resulted necessitate an investigation into potential solutions. This examination of contemporary ethical means, both practical and policy-oriented, of reducing the shortfall in organs draws on the experiences of a range of countries. The authors focus on the resolution and negotiation of ethical conflict, examine systems approaches such as the 'Spanish model' and the US Breakthrough Collaboratives, evaluate policy proposals relating to incentives, presumed consent, and modifications regarding end-of-life care, and evaluate the greatly increased use of (non-heart-beating) donors suffering circulatory death, as well as living donors. The proposed strategies and solutions are not only capable of resolving the UK's own organ-shortage crisis, but also of being implemented in other countries grappling with how to address the growing gap between supply and demand for organs.