The latest edition of the Newsletter Transplant – the international reference in monitoring practice in donation and transplantation of substances of human origin – has just been published. It provides comprehensive information and data on donation and transplantation activities in 2021 from 79 countries worldwide.
This invaluable report is produced thanks to the Spanish Organización Nacional de Trasplantes (ONT), which co-ordinates the collection, compilation and analysis of international data annually through a vast network of health authorities and officially designated individuals involved in donation and transplantation activities. This is done under the aegis of the European Committee on Organ Transplantation (CD-P-TO) of the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & Healthcare (EDQM)/Council of Europe. The publication is part of the CD-P-TO’s efforts to benchmark donation and transplantation programmes, which will contribute to increasing organ availability and improving the effectiveness of transplantation systems, and thus to securing the fundamental human right of access to good quality healthcare.
Although donation and transplantation activities continued to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, the return to pre-pandemic figures is well underway. Over time, an increased understanding of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the transplant setting – of the testing and selection of donors and recipients or the impact of the disease on patients, for example – has prompted changes not only in the way we protect and treat patients, but also in how transplant programmes are managed. Close international co-operation has played a major role in these successes, enabling transplant programmes and professionals worldwide to adjust to adverse – and persistent – pandemic conditions.
For more information, read the press release “Newsletter Transplant 2022 shows a global increase in donation and transplantation figures, lessons learnt from COVID-19 pandemic”.
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