Introduction
If you want to donate organs from your body after your death, it is important to tell your family, because organs must be removed very quickly to be useful. It is also helpful if you carry a donor card and register with Medicare.
Donor card
Many people feel that their body should have a use after death. A very popular scheme in Australia is the Donor Card scheme which allows donors, in the event of their death, to help someone else to live. With over 5,000 people in Australia in need of a transplant, this allows the matching of organs from people who no longer need them to people who will die if they don't get a transplant soon. You can register online at http://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/yourhealth/lodge_your_request/aodr_register.shtml , or by telephone on 1800 777 203. You can also pick up a donor card from your local Medicare office.
If you object to drug testing on animals, you may like to consider donating tissue from your body for research. There are specific “banks” which you can find on the Internet, such as an Eye Bank and a Bone Bank. It is essential that you make sure those close to you know of your wishes so that your tissue can be transported quickly.
Organs for medical science
Another way of finding a use for your body, or the body of a loved one, is to bequeath the whole body to medical science for the advancement of medicine. Bequeathing a body to medical science will benefit society for generations to come. This is achieved in two ways:
- by providing a teaching resource for which there is no satisfactory substitute;
- by providing research material for the advancement of knowledge of the human body.
Of course dignity, respect and anonymity are accorded the deceased remains of donors during and after anatomical studies. Students in anatomy are made fully aware of the special privilege granted to them by the generosity of community-minded citizens.
Strictly speaking, one cannot legally own one's own dead body and, therefore, cannot legally bequeath or donate it. However, if a deceased person has expressed a wish during life to give his or her body for teaching and research, or to donate organs, relatives rarely fail to carry out this wish.
It is important that if you wish to bequeath your body for teaching and research and/or donate your organs for transplantation, you should discuss your wishes with your relatives or executor(s) of your will. It is also a good idea to speak to your local university who have schemes for organ donation and whole body donation.
Some of the information below may be graphic in nature, and is provided solely to give you the details that you need to be able to make a decision with the full facts.
Anatomical examination and teaching
Each State in Australia has its own Transplantation and Anatomy Act. Of course the dates of each differ so we cannot provide dates of each Act in this article. However, each Act enables people to bequeath their bodies for anatomical examination – that is, teaching, studying, or researching into form, shape or structure of the human body.
This allows the teaching of anatomy to medical & dental students, related professionals, and students on authorised courses of anatomy.
The Anatomy Act allows the examination to last up to approximately 3 years, however, it varies from State to State. When it is complete, arrangements are made for the remains to be cremated. Occasionally a body may have clinically important anatomical variations and take a great deal of time & skill to reveal. In such circumstances, if permission is granted by you (on the forms provided), then these parts may be kept for a longer time.
Research
It is possible to bequeath a body for research, governed under the Human Tissue Act .
The body will be used in research relevant to the science or practice of medicine, including the development of surgical skills.
A bequest may be declined under the following circumstances
- If the body has had a post-mortem examination, the deceased died suddenly or following an accidents, since these usually come under a Coroner's jurisdiction;
- If, at the time of death, organs are removed for transplantation, then the body will not be accepted for teaching and research, with the exception of bodies from which the eyes only have been removed;
- If, at the time of death, there is insufficient storage space, a shortage of staff, or for any other legitimate reason. | 
