THE NHS cannot cope with the huge increase in the number of organ transplants for which the Government has legislated, campaigners say.

The National Kidney Federation and the All Party Parliamentary Kidney Group will call today for changes to the organ transplant system to take advantage of the Human Tissue Act, which came into effect last month. Reforms could double the number of kidney patients receiving transplants each year and abolish the waiting list of 6,000, campaigners say. But a shortage of surgeons and nurses means that the effects of the Act are limited.

Britain has 24 transplant centres, which should each have five surgeons — 120 in total. The actual number of specialist transplant surgeons is 86, the federation says. There are 12 full-time transplant co-ordinators — specialist nurses who give advice to patients and relatives; there should be at least 40.

About half of organs are unused as a result of relatives refusing permission. The Act, which states that relatives do not have a right to veto the expressed wishes of a donor, and should not be invited to do so, was intended at least to double Britain’s rate of organ donation, currently the lowest in Western Europe.

Doctors will still be expected to respect the preferences and religious wishes of families, experts said. Tim Statham, chief executive of the federation, said: “Despite the provisions of the Act, we do not expect surgeons to now ignore the strongly held wishes of relatives.”

However, an increase in the availability of organs, and in the time for testing, identification and monitoring of suitable donors and transplant patients, would put stresses on the capacity of surgeons and transplant centres, he said.

According to the federation, about 800 potential donor organs are lost each year from donors in whom the heart has stopped. In other cases, donors are “brain-dead”. Until recently non-heartbeating donors had not been considered an appropriate source of organs.

The report, published today, calls on the Government to monitor the effect of legislation on transplant success.

Anthony Warrens, of the Royal Society of Medicine, said: “At a time of deep emotional stress, when relatives have lost a loved one, it is understandable that a person may refuse permission to donate a much needed organ from their relative. This is often a decision they come to regret.”

• The NHS is cancelling more than 620 operations a day because of administrative errors, it was claimed last night. Mistakes such as failing to book operating theatres or to inform patients of the date resulted in about 162,500 procedures being abandoned last year. The Conservative MP Grant Shapps has used Freedom of Information laws to request data from trusts in England and Wales.

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