Confirming the Brain Death and the Nurse’s Tasks in the Care of Potential Organ Donors and Their Families

Abstract

Introduction. Transplantology is the youngest area of medicine dealing with organ transplantation that is considered to be the most difficult.
Aim. The aim of the work is to analyse the nurse’s tasks in the care of the organ donor after confirming brain death and propagate the idea of transplantology.
Case Report. A 52-year-old patient admitted to the hospital at the neurological department after a craniocerebral trauma. Computed tomography of the head showed brain contusion, fractures of the bones of the skull cover, the presence of a small amount of air in the cranial cavity. Immediately after admission, the patient was tangled, conscious, reluctant to answer questions, without paresis and a short-term seizure. Anti-oedema and anti-epileptic treatment was implemented in the neurosurgery department. After starting treatment, there was a temporary improvement, followed by a secondary worsening of brain and brain stem failure with deep cerebral coma. The patient was referred for further treatment in the Intensive Care Unit.
Discussion. Organ transplantation involves collecting them from the donor and implanting them into the recipient. The donor can be either a living person (when it comes to paired organs or fragment of the liver as well as the tissues and cells) or the deceased person, who during their life did not express objection to organ donation after their death. The major principle in this case is the pronouncement of brain death, i.e. confirmation of patient’s death resulting in changing the therapeutic goals.
Conclusions. Transplantology is an interdisciplinary field of medicine, the success of which relies on the cooperation of many professionals. The nurse takes an active part in the team’s work starting from the donor’s organs eligibility, through transplantation, to the care of the patient after the transplantation. The nurse also participates in building up an atmosphere favourable for good relations with the potential donor’s family. (JNNN 2019;8(3):124–132)