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P-102 Eye donation in hospice care settings: reviewing service improvement, increasing choice for patients at end-of-life to develop sustainable practice

bmjspcare · 2025-11-21 · canonical JSON source

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Background There is a historic shortage of ocular tissue in the UK, with over two million people living with sight loss that could benefit from transplant, necessitating a need to explore alternate routes of donation. NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) partnered with the University of Southampton to explore eye donation in hospice and palliative care settings, showing that patients are largely unaware that they may be able to explore donation, but wished to have their preferences established and shared.Aims Since 2023 NHSBT have implemented a new initiative embedding the STEPS toolkit recommended in the Eye Donation from Palliative and Hospice care contexts: investigating Potential, Practice, Preference and Perceptions (EDiPPPP) study (Long-Sutehall, Bracher, Mollart, et al. Health Soc Care Deliv Res. 2023 Nov;11(20):1-159).Method Following the initial pilot phase NHSBT undertook a review of the developed resources, utilising site feedback, reflective models of practice and academic research combined with empirical evidence to enhance the system designed and piloted following the EDiPPPP study, adhering to the COM-B model of behavioural change.Results As a result of this continued review, NHSBT has implemented this system across 20 hospice sites, resulting in 335 referrals and 205 eye donations; a conversion rate of 61.2%.Conclusion Through close partnership with hospice and palliative care settings, NHSBT developed a system of eligibility screening and conversation facilitation that figures show is proven to be effective, bringing donation choice to more people in line with the patient perspectives of donation from the EDiPPPP study. NHSBT will undertake a formal evaluation of this work and is aiming to expand this system to make it available across hospice, community and specialist palliative care settings in England and Wales, empowering those at the end of their life to make informed choices about their preferences for donation supported by confident, competent staff with processes rooted in academic research.Funded by the National Institute for Health Research.