PERSPECTIVE article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1574900
This article is part of the Research TopicEthical and Psychiatric Considerations in Euthanasia and Medically Assisted Suicide (E/PAS)View all 7 articles
ORGAN DONATION AFTER MEDICALLY ASSISTED DEATH ON PSYCHIATRIC GROUNDS: AN ETHICAL ANALYSIS
Provisionally accepted
- 1Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands
- 2University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands, Netherlands
- 3Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Gelderland, Netherlands
- 4Amsterdam University Medical Center, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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Organ donation after medical assistance in dying (MAID) on psychiatric grounds is a relatively new practice that poses complex ethical challenges. This paper explores several ethical issues that are important for guiding current and future practice. While organ donation after MAID may alleviate organ shortage, it also prompts concerns regarding the instrumentalization of human life. However, it can be argued that if a patient wishes to donate, based on insight and deliberation, the person is not just regarded as a means. This implies that decision-making capacity is crucial, which requires considering the potential influence of psychiatric disorder. A further issue which can compromise decision-making is susceptibility to external pressure. A careful assessment of patient decision-making capacity and absence of external pressure is needed while avoiding stigmatization of individuals with psychiatric illnesses. Further research to better understand the possible interplay between psychiatric disorders and decision-making capacity in the context of organ donation after MAID is recommended.
Keywords: Medical assistance in dying, organ donation, decision-making capacity, autonomy, stigmatization
Received: 11 Feb 2025; Accepted: 29 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Vlerken, Marijnissen, Pronk, Widdershoven and Van Veen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Karlijn Vlerken, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands
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