Abstract:
Transplantation and organ donation are controversial and have generated interest and debates in numerous communities. The absence of permanent programs aimed at raising awareness among the population and encouraging organ donation would help to solve doubts about its importance as well as eliminating myths and prejudices regarding this knowledge. There is a decrease of potential donors caused by lack of knowledge, cultural or religious issues to organ donation and transplantation. For these reasons, the purpose of this study was to determine the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of the users of social networks regarding donation and organ transplantation. A randomised validated and self-administered online questionnaire was distributed through Google Forms on social networks between June to July 2018. The questionnaire was filled out by 408 participants who were between 18 and 59 years old, 359 people received information about transplants and organ donations through television, social networks and printed newspapers; 360 people are willing to donate an organ, but 46 people who are willing to donate, are not willing to have a donor identification (p <0.001), and only two mentioned that it is for religious reasons, 28 for fear of the operation, and the other participants mentioned by other factors. Concerning brain death, 320 considered that the heart would continue beating and 306 stated that people with brain death would continue in a coma. This study showed that the vast majority of participants had enough information about organ donation and transplantation. However, they had minimal knowledge about brain death. Besides, a reasonable percentage of the participants had a positive attitude towards donation; and the media had a significant effect on information about organ donation and brain death.