Written BY: Michael Janocik Former Director of Right to Life of Louisville, and Former Deputy Director and Registered Lobbyist for Kentucky Right to Life Association.
Recently my mother passed away, just four years after my father died, so this is my first experience with the probate process. I’m no expert, but the probate process is officious, complex, and tedious, especially with the court appearances, paperwork, interviews, lawyers, executors, etc. It makes sense because it is important for the governing officials to confirm my mother is deceased, her will was validly executed, and that her assets are distributed in accordance with her intentions. As well it should be – respecting one’s wishes even, or especially, after death, is important and who is more vulnerable to abuse than a recently deceased elderly person with assets left behind?
We should think about this in the context of vital organ donations, and for all the same reasons. After all, our vital organs are, well, vital. Donating a liver or heart should require at least, if not more, scrutiny and legal protection than donating your timeshare or your minivan.
Why, for example, were my minor-aged children, most all their friends, and countless adults encouraged to donate their vital organs with a simple signature on the back of their driver’s licenses, after reading (or not) a one-page flyer racked between a vending machine and a broken water fountain at the DMV?
Regrettably, it was no surprise to me that of the 350 Kentucky organ donation cases investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services, 73 of those had, and I quote: “Neurological signs that made them ineligible for organ donation.” You got it. They were not dead, yet they were slated for surgery to harvest their vital organs. Even the New York Times carried the story with the headline: “Doctors Were Preparing to Remove Their Organs. Then They Woke Up . . . A federal investigation found a Kentucky nonprofit pushed hospital workers toward surgery despite signs of revival in patients.”
Regarding vital organ donation, we are not even getting the first question right: “Are they dead?” But do we really care? The hourly clerks asking Kentuckians to sign their driver’s license as they exchange the torn numbered, next in line pulled tab would suggest, not so much.
I served for 19 years as deputy director and registered lobbyist for Kentucky Right to Life Association and I learned a lot. More importantly, watching the death of my parents over the last few years I have learned even more, which deserves another essay altogether.
While I have deep, abiding respect and admiration for the countess competent, caring, and compassionate physicians, researchers, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who give their all, the end-of-life sector of our healthcare system is broken. It is broken because its bloated public and private bureaucracies have abandoned the sanctity of life ethic for the ends justify the means ethos.
When modern medicine has emptied its quiver, and your loved one has no options for a cure or feasible treatment is the time when families are most vulnerable to institutional solutions, even when attended by the moral hazards of “brain death” in the case of vital organ donation, and “medically administered artificial nutrition and hydration” in the case of “comfort care” wherein even IV fluids for hydration are declared extraordinary medical intervention. Never mind they are already delivering morphine through an existing IV. In both cases, hastening the death of the patient is to be considered compassionate, and acquiescing to it is an obligation.
We should, indeed, leave the definition of physical death to the scientists. Should so- called brain death be proven to be dispositive, and accurately diagnosed, then it would prove to be a blessing to expand the pool of donors of life-saving organs. Similarly, when the delivery of IV fluids for hydration proves to be an extraordinary burden on the patient, or is medically contraindicated, then patients or their surrogates should have the autonomy to withhold or withdraw.
Unfortunately, the record indicates these solutions are anything but. Rather, they are the justification for abuse, and a means to ration healthcare away from those who need it most.
It is long overdue for honorable healthcare professionals to say enough is enough to the bloated, impersonal healthcare bureaucracies that have subordinated intrinsic human dignity to institutional efficiency.
How to Remove Your Signature from Organ Donation:
- Visit Your State’s Donor Registry
Head to your state’s official online donor registry to update or remove your status. You can find the correct link by visiting Donate Life America and selecting your state. - Contact Your State’s DMV
If you registered as an organ donor through the DMV, check their website or call your local office for instructions on updating your records. - Request a New Driver’s License or ID
Even after updating your donor status, your current ID may still show a donor icon. Request a new ID to reflect your updated choice. - Notify Your Family
It’s important your family knows your decision, especially in an emergency when they may be asked about your wishes. - Check for State-Specific Steps
Some states may have additional forms or specific procedures. Be sure to read any instructions provided by your state’s registry or DMV.
By completing these steps, you’ll ensure your organ donation preferences are accurately recorded and respected.