Families of Māori in adult intensive care units (ICUs) are less likely to have organ donation conversations and to consent to donation than families of NZ Europeans, according to a retrospective study using patient data collected between 2018 and 2021. Data were obtained from 23 adult ICUs in New Zealand, with patients classified as eligible for organ donation via neurological determination of death (DNDD; n = 687) or circulatory determination of death (DCDD; n = 580). Overall, donation conversations occurred for 46.9% of patients, with 51.3% resulting in consent. In addition to ethnicity, other factors associated with the likelihood of donation conversations and subsequent donation were conditions such as encephalopathy and cardiovascular disease (decreased likelihood of conversations), and male gender and ICU length of stay (increased likelihood of consent for DCDD). Early consultation with Organ Donation New Zealand and timely brain death confirmation were associated with improved rates of donation conversations and donation consent.
