Literature

Practical manual for healthcare providers on the medical and logistical steps of organ donation after euthanasia in the Netherlands.

Discusses the legal and ethical conditions for donation after euthanasia in Belgium and the Netherlands, including the strict separation of both decisions.

Article estimating the potential number of organ donors after euthanasia. It is estimated that about 10 percent of people who undergo euthanasia are suitable to donate at least one organ.

Describes how a donation pathway can start at the patient’s home, with death and procurement subsequently taking place in hospital.

Argues that donation after euthanasia is a voluntary, altruistic last wish and that increasing transplant numbers is not the aim of the procedure.

Discusses the Dutch experience with home-initiated procedures as a model for countries with medical assistance in dying, such as Canada.

Legal analysis of donation after euthanasia in the Netherlands and Belgium: the legal frameworks, the alignment between euthanasia legislation and donor registration, and the practical legal questions that arise.

Exploratory article on the possibilities and ethical considerations of organ donation after euthanasia in minors.

Explores the ethical and legal limits of the idea of performing euthanasia through organ procurement in a living donor.

Explores the theoretical and ethically contested idea in which death occurs through the donation procedure itself; not permitted in the Netherlands or Belgium.

Shows that hearts from donors after euthanasia can be made suitable for transplantation using machine perfusion — one reason heart donation is possible in this setting.

Case in which the procedure started at home with sedation, after which the sleeping patient was transported to hospital for donation.

Overview of international practice and challenges, including the outcomes of the first international roundtable on donation after assisted dying.

Analyses exactly where the boundary lies between euthanasia and the donation procedure, and why that separation remains legally necessary.

Describes the possibilities and limits of donation after euthanasia in Huntington’s disease, a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder.

Case report on the additional burden of a donation pathway for patients with a psychiatric disorder and their relatives.

Explores the possibility of directed donation after euthanasia: whether a donor may designate a specific recipient, the legal and ethical considerations, and the conditions under which this can be done in practice.

Case report on organ donation after euthanasia in a patient with dementia, addressing ethical, legal and medical aspects.

Argues that it is legally permissible to start the procedure at home with anesthesia, after which the sedated patient is transported to hospital.

Analysis of the feasibility of organ donation following voluntary assisted dying in Australia, drawing lessons from international practice in the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada and Spain.

Overview of ten years of Dutch experience with donation after euthanasia for psychiatric suffering, including numbers and points of attention.

Review of published transplant outcomes for organs donated after euthanasia or assisted dying; results are good.

Authors’ response to criticism of the case in which euthanasia started at home and donation was completed in hospital.

Systematic review of the legal and ethical aspects of organ donation after medical assistance in dying worldwide.

Systematic review of the existing processes, protocols and practical working methods around organ donation after medical assistance in dying.

National cohort study showing that kidney transplants from donors after euthanasia produce good outcomes over ten years.

A case report offering practical and ethical insights into organ donation after euthanasia in a patient with psychiatric suffering.

Discusses how difficult it is to classify suffering as somatic or psychiatric in research, and what that means for donation-after-euthanasia figures.

Practice article on the key role of the general practitioner: the early conversation, coordination between patient, family and donation team, and the need for support.

Article examining whether the due-care requirements in existing guidelines are sufficient for psychiatric patients.

Dutch-language overview of the current state of organ donation after euthanasia in everyday practice.

Summary of twelve years of Dutch experience with donation after euthanasia, including numbers of procedures and organs donated.

Exploratory study into how general practitioners view organ donation after euthanasia, the dilemmas they experience and the support they need.

International ethical recommendations from The Transplantation Society for careful implementation of donation after euthanasia or assisted dying.

The current Dutch national guideline describing the entire pathway: from indication and euthanasia review to organ procurement, logistics and aftercare.