Date Published: 30 July 2005

Research at Cardiff University shows that kidney recipients are concerned for live donors

Research conducted at Cardiff University (Wales, UK) indicates that recipients of kidneys from living people are reluctant to accept them before discussions with their donors.

Paul Gill, from the School of Nursing and Midwifery Studies recruited 11 kidney donors and their recipients from a regional transplant centre (Southmead hospital in Bristol). After interviewing them about their experiences of the process, which is often associated with potential physical and psychological risks, he found that all donors made instant, voluntary decisions to donate and did not regret doing so.

Researcher Paul Gill also found that:

" However, recipients originally showed caution because they were concerned for their donor’s health, they only agreed to accept after establishing that it was something the donor genuinely wanted to do."

_ Recipients also reported that their lives had been transformed by the transplant, experiencing significant improvements in their general health and ability to do things they hadn’t been able to do in years, such as exercising, driving and holidaying abroad. Donors subsequently felt an immense sense of personal satisfaction from donating."

This research was conducted as part of a Ph.D. project at the Cardiff University School of Nursing. The significance of this work is such that the author has been invited to present his findings at the British Sociological Association’s Medical Sociology Group annual conference in September at the University of York.

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