Have you ever wonder how many organ donors are there globally or how many donors are there in Malaysia alone? What about you? Have you registered yourself as an organ donor yet? well, i am proud to tell you that i did.
It happened on one morning when i woke up. I just came back to Malaysia for a summer break from Australia. Somehow something in Australia changed me to be more aggressive in my actions. I always wanted to sign up as an organ donor but never really acted on it. I have always lied on my excuses of not knowing where to sign up and i was afraid but i never really know what i was afraid of. So that fine morning when i woke up, the idea of signing up stoke me like a thunder and i took the car to the General Hospital in KL that was nearest to my house.
When i reached the hospital, i just bluntly went to the help desk and told them my intention and i could feel that i was very much welcomed by them. One of the nurse lead me to a room with a counter and told the staff over the counter of my intention. Then the staff in charged gave me an application form and asked me to fill up but with one condition, that is to consult with my parents first just in case they might reject due to religion beliefs. Well i didnt do that but just went straight to sign on the form and then i was given my very own donor's card. The whole process only took me 5 minutes max. On the card, we were given the choice to choose what we would like to donate whether is just the kidneys, heart, liver, lungs, eyes, bones or skin or all organ and tissues. I chose all since i think if i were death, what used will all these organs and tissues be good for me? Might as well give them to others who really need them right?
After the whole process was done, the nurses thanked and asked me why i wanted to donate. I simply told them i just felt like. When they heard that they smiled and told me to spread the spirit of sharing if possible because there are really only a hand full of donors in Malaysia, and a lot of waiting patients died during the period of waiting, and some of them were rather young. A lot of Malaysians have the false impression that after signing up, that means they will have to donate their organs when asked, even when they are still alive. That is completely wrong. Our organs will only be donated when we were death.
My whole family are free thinkers hence when i told my parents about my decision, they had no qualms about that. I do understand that some religion believed in having a complete or whole body for burial when we passed away for our after life or for reincarnation, and they are some parents who could not stand to see their loves ones being dissected after they passed away. I have no opinions on the after life and reincarnation because it is very much debatable. But what i do know is that if i chose to donate my organs to those who really need them, i would have given them a chance to continue their lives, to attain their dreams and hopes, and also their family and friends another chance to be with their love ones again. Imagine what would it be if everyone is reluctant to be a donor. Imagine your little brother or sister is only 4 years old and needed a new heart to survive but there is none avail, and imagine having to watch him or her dying slowly everyday. Isnt that heartbreaking? And if a kind someone who died in an accident is a donor and donated the heart to your younger brother and sister and because of that your younger brother and sister will have the chance to go to kindergarden, school, college, university, fall in love, married, have kids and so on.... As for the donor, i am sure the family will be very proud of what he did and knows that his spirit will always be around and the world will be a better one for them, simply because they can feel and see that there are still loves and hopes in the world.
As i said, the whole process is only 5 minutes but i have been feeling very proud of myself even to this day. For those who are interested, please do contact the numbers below or google for the nearest hospital available from you and sign up. May the world fills with more loves and hopes. For those what are already a donor, congratulations and for those who will be a donor soon, thank you so very much and i am sure everyone will be proud of you. Oh ya just remember to have the donor's card in your wallet all the time. Cheers!
Contact Details
Malaysian Donor Hotline : 03-2719 1066
Pusat Sumber Transplan Nasional, Hospital KL : 03-2694 2704
Pusat Sumber Pendermaan Organ, Hospital Ipoh : 05-522 2324 / 253 333 ext 2324
Pusat Sumber Transplan, Hospital P.Pinang : 04-200 2423 / 229 333 ext 435
Pusat Sumber Transplan, Hospital Sultanah Aminah : 07-223 1666 ext 2751
(Note: the numbers above might have changed since 2002. Please google for the right contact details)
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