UK Transplant (UKT), the NHS organisation that matches and allocates donated organs, is to encourage riders to join the NHS Organ Donor Register so they can help others after their own deaths.
There are special scheme application packs, which include a special helmet sticker, so riders can be quickly identified as potential donors in the event of an accident.
The free stickers are attached using an acrylic-based adhesive, which will not damage helmets as solvents would. The stickers warn rescuers that the helmet should only be removed by qualified medical staff, identify the rider as a member of the NHS Organ Donor Register, and provides space for the rider to write their blood group & emergency contact details.
Complete application packs will also be distributed through motorcycle shops, garages, pubs and cafes, at rallies and other events.
New figures from UK Transplant show that 3,074 patients received a transplant in 2006/07, up 10% on the previous year, and the highest number ever recorded.
But an increase in the number of people being referred for transplants meant that waiting lists ended the year at an all time high. A total of 7,234 patients were actively registered for a transplant on March 31, 2007 - 8% more than a year earlier.
Chris Rudge, UKT managing and transplant director, said: âMore organ donors are desperately needed. The number of patients awaiting a transplant is greater than ever before. If people wish to help others live after their death, it is vital that they make their intentions known by talking to their families and joining the NHS Organ Donor Register.â
The register is a confidential, computerised database that holds the wishes of more than 14 million people who have decided that they want to help others after their death, including more than 1.1 million who signed up during 2006/07.
It is available to medical staff 24 hours a day, and is used to establish whether a person wanted to be a donor, and which organs should be donated.
Donor Stickers.
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