Organ Donation Week 2025

CTM staff with the Organ Donation Artwork

This week (22 - 28 September), CTM is marking Organ Donation Week 2025.

During Organ Donation Week (22 - 28 September) NHS Blood and Transplant and Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board are calling on people to register their donation decision and talk to their families about organ donation as around 8000 people are actively waiting for a transplant across the UK.

1,570,8543 people in Wales have registered their decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register - this equates to 50% of the Welsh population.

In 2022, the CTM UHB region had a registration rate of 31%. In 2025, the CTM UHB region now has a registration rate of 47%. We want to encourage even more people across CTM UHB to learn about organ donation, and to register their decision.

What is Organ Donation?
Organ donation is the gift of an organ to help someone who needs a transplant. Thousands of lives in the UK are saved or transformed each year by organ transplants.

You can donate some organs while you are alive, and this is called living organ donation. However, most organ and tissue donations come from people who have died.

You can find out more about Organ Donation here by clicking here.

What about the laws relating to Organ Donation?
The legislation for Wales is deemed consent.

This means that if you haven’t registered an organ and tissue donation decision (opt in or opt out), you will be considered to have no objection to becoming a donor.

It will be considered that you agree to become an organ donor when you die, if:

You are over 18
You have not opted out
You are not in an excluded group

Organ donation is your decision. You can choose which organs to donate or opt out of donation altogether.

How your family is involved in organ donation?
This week we are urging people to share their decision on organ donation with their family and friends.

Your family will always be consulted about whether you wanted to be an organ donor or not, and clinicians will never proceed with organ donation if your family or loved ones have any objections.

If you have those conversations, your family will be able to support your decision if they are approached about organ donation by a specialist nurse in hospital.

When a family are approached, 9 out of 10 families will agree to donation if they know their family member was on the Organ Donor Register and talked about their decision.

Even though the law around organ donation has now changed across England, Scotland and Wales, family members will still always be consulted before organ donation goes ahead. This means it is still just as important as ever to register your decision on the NHS Organ Donor Register and ensure your friends and family know what you want.

You can find out how your family is involved in organ donation here.

How can you register your decision?
You can register your decision to donate (opt in) or not to donate (opt out) here: https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/register-your-decision/

CTM’s Organ Donation Team
Organ donation is supported by a wide range of staff and colleagues across the NHS, including teams from A&E, ICU, Theatres, Radiology, Physiotherapy, Pharmacy, Psychology, Haematology, Biochemistry, Blood Bank, Medical Examiners, Area Coroner and Catering.

Corinna McNeil and Shaun Miller-Jones are two Specialist Nurses for organ donation.

You can find out more about their roles here.

Corinna McNeil said: “We want to use Organ Donation Week to encourage even more people to register their donation decisions, and to talk to their families about their choices. Organ donation really does make a huge difference, and your gift could give someone a future, or save a life.”

New artwork at Prince Charles Hospital celebrates Organ Donors and Encourages Life-Saving Conversations

This summer, CTM unveiled a powerful new art installation at Prince Charles Hospital to recognise organ donors and their families, and to inspire more people across Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board (CTM UHB) to register their organ donation decision.

This week, CTM invited families of organ donors from the CTM UHB region to visit Prince Charles Hospital to attend the official opening of the art installation and to honour and remember their loved ones.

Shaun Miller-Jones (Specialist Nurse for Organ Donation) said: “This week’s event was a wonderful way to throw a spotlight on the incredibly positive impact that organ donation can have, and to honour the families of organ donors, who have chosen to turn personal tragedies into moments of hope for others. We’d like to thank everyone for supporting this event.”

Abe Sampson, Head of Charity and Income Generation said: “Our CTM NHS Charity is delighted to have been able to support this incredible project and to be able to finally share it with local families whose loved ones have helped give the gift of life. This creative and inspiring artwork not only brightens up the hospital and recognises our amazing organ donors but will also provoke some life-changing and life-saving conversations about organ donation. Thank you to everyone who has helped to make it possible.”

25/09/2025