Do you want to live forever?

Sorry for the clickbait, I don't know how you can attain immortality.

But you can Live On through organ donation, even after you have reached the end of your life.

No, this isn't a post brought to you by the Ministry of Health, much as I wish someone would sponsor my writings.

I just happen to be a supporter of organ donation.

Singapore has an opt-out organ donation scheme called the Human Organ Transplant Act (HOTA). Under HOTA, the government has the right to harvest your kidneys, heart, liver, and corneas from your cadaver and give them to patients who need it.

You are automatically part of the scheme unless you submit paperwork to withdraw yourself. But if you do, and need an organ at some time in the future, you will be at a lower priority to receive it.

A lot of people have criticised HOTA for being dystopian, but many other developed countries also have opt-out organ donation schemes. Such schemes result in a higher rate of organ donation compared to if people have to volunteer to donate (Johnson & Goldstein, 2003). This in turn brings better outcomes for patients in those countries. And let's face it, anyone, even you or your loved ones, might become one of those patients if misfortune strikes. Wouldn't you want the best chance of getting lifesaving treatment?

Singapore also has an opt-in organ donation scheme covering the other organs that HOTA doesn't encompass. It is called the Medical (Therapy, Education and Research) Act (MTERA) and you have to register yourself to be part of it.

You can choose to donate just your organs or your whole cadaver, and specify what you want them to be used for. As the name of the Act suggests, organs can be used for therapy, education, and research. Therapy refers to treating the sick, or transplantation in other words. Education refers to using your organs or full-body cadaver for teaching purposes or surgical practice at the local medical schools. Research refers to using your organs for the advancement of scientific knowledge, such as conducting experiments on them or observing them closely, and could contribute to the development of new drugs or treatment methods.

As I write this, I am not yet of legal age but will be by the time this scheduled post is published and gets into your hands. When that happens, I will be pledging my organs to MTERA for all three purposes. The people in charge are free to determine how best to use my gift. I don't think my organs are unsuitable for transplant despite my medical condition, because they are all in working order and my disease is non-transmissible. But if they want to give my organs to trainee doctors for dissection, or scientists for testing potentially groundbreaking medicines, they are welcome to do so too.

Whatever little bit my organs can do to benefit humankind after my death will satisfy me.

Reference: Johnson, E. J., & Goldstein, D. (2003). Do defaults save lives?.