Using an informatics education strategy to resolve the dilemma of teaching transplantation in medical institutions: Multidisciplinary medical team perspectives

In Taiwan, the current survival rate 1 year after transplantation exceeds 80%. However, the number of organ/tissue donors per year in Taiwan is extremely low, resulting in increased mortality. This is also true in Europe and in the United States. Recently, data from the Taiwan Organ Registry and Sharing Center showed that, although fundraising for organs/tissues slightly increased, the number of donors did not exhibit a corresponding growth trend. Identifying appropriate donors and the provision of good quality transplantation care by medical team members are current challenges. Hence, the application of information technology to in-service education for organ transplantation professionals has been suggested. This was a qualitative study that employed qualitative content analysis with purposive and snowball sampling. The study participants (n = 8, mean age 39.88 ± 3.06 years) included medical staff involved in tissue/organ transplantation from 4 leading medical centers and 3 regional teaching hospitals, and those who participated in the informatics education system. The interviewees from multidisciplinary medical teams showed the status of and dilemma in organ fundraising/donation/ transplantation, noting 6 core themes. Regarding relevant education and training, 4 core themes were identified. Current educational courses for organ fundraising/donation/transplantation are inadequate and seem to provide insufficient information to multidisciplinary medical teams. Hence, it is necessary to develop a theoretical construct to create a complete curriculum framework and to establish complete fit-in professional and ethical organ transplantation learning programs based on informatics technology to increase the interdisciplinary exchange of experience.