人體器官移植之法律現況

The Current Legal Status of Human Organ Transplantation

由於醫療科技發達，器官捐贈可造福器官衰竭病患，使其健康預後更佳。然器官捐贈來源缺乏，台灣每年平均器官捐贈為一兩百人，然而等待器官移植者卻高達八千人，依照我國人體器官移植條例規定，醫護人員有勸募器官之責。為了增加醫護人員對器官捐贈法律議題之瞭解，本文將針對人體器官移植條例與人體器官移植條例施行細則之相關規定進行說明。此外，本文引用兩則司法判決說明台灣人體器官移植之司法實務現況，包括「愛滋器官捐贈事件」及「未設器官保存庫事件」，期待醫護人員能瞭解人體器官捐贈與移植之法律要件與現況，進而發揮器官勸募之角色功能，同時在提供照護時，能將病人安全奉為圭臬，以期醫病雙贏。

Advances in medical technology mean that organ donation operations hold the potential to significantly improve the health status of organ failure patients. Taiwan registers an average of 100~200 organ donors per year; however, cases awaiting organ transplant regularly number 8,000 annually. According to the Human Organ Transplant Act, health professionals are obliged to promote organ donation. This article introduces the Taiwan Human Organ Transplant Act and illustrates its implementation and relevant provisions in order to increase general awareness among healthcare professionals of the legal aspects of organ donation and transplantation. In addition, this paper cites two judicial decisions that highlight domestic judicial practice with regard to human organ transplantation. These include decisions on AIDS organ donation and the ruling not to establish an organ bank. Healthcare professionals must comprehend the legal requirements and current status of human organ transplantation in order to play a positive role in increasing organ donations in Taiwan. A win-win situation for healthcare provision and patients results when patient safety is the cornerstone of healthcare provider services.