Here's a headline for you:
It just seems so wrong. People shouldn't have to compete for life-saving procedures.
A Dutch reality show that claims to be trying to draw attention to a shortage of organ donors said Tuesday it would go ahead with a program in which a terminally ill woman will choose a contestant to receive one of her kidneys. The program, "Big Donor Show," has been attacked as unethical and tasteless. One member of the Dutch parliament suggested the government should block Friday's broadcast.
"We know that this program is super controversial and some people will think it's tasteless, but we think the reality is even more shocking and tasteless: waiting for an organ is just like playing the lottery," Laurens Drillich, chairman of the BNN network, said in a statement.
He said waiting lists in the Netherlands are more than four years long and 200 patients die annually for lack of a donor.
The network identified the donor as "Lisa," a 37-year-old woman with an inoperable brain tumour. During the show, she will hear interviews with the three candidates, their families and friends before choosing who will get her kidney.
I understand that reality shows are not all "real". There has to be some scripting to ensure controversy, or who would watch? But this is crazy! Who wants to decide who gets to live and who dies? I know I would never want to be in the position of deciding.
That said, the shows producers raise some good points in that it is raising awareness for organ donation. The Dutch Education Minister Ronald Plasterk, addressed parliament basically saying they could not censure the show, as much as they might like to. Also:
Noting the shortage of donors, he said it was a good time for a debate on the question of what incentives to donate are ethical.
He cited the example of a Dutch funeral home that is offering discounts to the families of people who were registered as donors, and an idea presented by the country's Kidney Institute to give registered donors preference on organ waiting lists.
So let's hear it. What do you think the incentives should be for organ donation?