Prolonged Legislative Conflict Leads to Decrease in Organ Transplant Cases

Jeon Jin-sook: "Government Must Not Neglect Public Health and Patient Safety"

Jeon Jin-sook Assembly Member

As the conflict between the government and medical community prolongs, it has been confirmed that the number of organ transplants has significantly decreased this year.

On the 15th, Jeon Jin-sook, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea representing Gwangju Buk-gu Eul, analyzed the "Annual, Monthly, and Organ-specific Organ Transplant Status" data submitted by the National Organ, Tissue and Blood Management Agency. The analysis showed that from February to August this year, the number of the five major organ transplants was 835, a 22.8% decrease compared to 1,082 during the same period last year.

By organ, during the same period, kidney transplants decreased by 23.9%, from 523 to 398; liver transplants decreased by 18.3%, from 257 to 210; pancreas transplants decreased by 56.3%, from 16 to 7; heart transplants decreased by 27.8%, from 151 to 109; and lung transplants decreased by 17.8%, from 135 to 111.

Among the top five hospitals in terms of organ transplant numbers this year (Seoul Asan Medical Center, Yonsei University Severance Hospital, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul National University Hospital, and Yangsan Pusan National University Hospital), the number of organ transplants also decreased by up to more than 35%.

Seoul Asan Medical Center saw a 35.2% decrease from 128 cases between February and August last year to 83 cases this year, and Yonsei University Severance Hospital also decreased by 34.4%, from 122 to 80 cases. Samsung Medical Center (1.2%↓), Seoul National University Hospital (13.4%↓), and Yangsan Pusan National University Hospital (35.8%↓) also experienced declines in transplant numbers.

Additionally, the number of confirmed brain deaths has also decreased. The number of brain deaths was 307 during the same period last year, but dropped by 19.9% to 246 this year.

The medical field analyzes that the decrease in organ transplants is linked to medical gaps such as the confirmation of brain death, which has led to a decline in consent rates for transplantation.

Rep. Jeon emphasized, “Patients in severe and emergency conditions waiting for organ transplants are unable to receive timely transplants due to medical gaps,” and added, “The government must no longer neglect public health and patient safety, and should open the path to resolving the government-medical community conflict through an official apology and dismissal of those responsible.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.