Dan Repacholi (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to contribute my support for the Australian Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation Authority Amendment (Disclosure of Information) Bill 2023. Life is the one gift every person on this earth has been given. Some people have the chance to get this gift twice. The giver of this gift is an organ donor, and because of those generous people who want to make an impact to others, even after they have passed, thousands of Australians have been given a second chance at life. Being an organ and tissue donor truly is one of the greatest gifts that you can give.

While many Australians are already signed up to be an organ donor, it is, unfortunately, uncommon for someone to be in a position to be able to donate once they've passed. This is because donors need to pass away in the hospital with well-functioning organs to be considered for organ donation. This means two per cent or 1,400 people who die in a hospital each year have their organs or tissue donated. This is why we can never have enough people sign up to be an organ or tissue donor.

Labor has a proud legacy of ensuring Australia has the best health service in the world. It was the Rudd government that implemented our current best practice organ and tissue donation system. The Albanese government wants to keep this legacy going by improving donation rates even further, and this bill is vital to being able to achieve this. This bill takes practical steps to help more people to be donors and to see more lives saved in this process. This bill will allow authorised family members to give consent to the disclosure of information about an organ and tissue donor, and it will allow the OTA and DonateLife staff to obtain consent from an extended list of family members of a deceased donor before including information about that deceased donor in their promotional and educational activities. This is important because in order to get more people signed up as organ donors we need to make sure there is more information and education about the issues. At the same time, it is very important that the donor and their families are respected.

It is a tough time when a loved one passes, but, hopefully, knowing that their loved one's brave decision to be an organ and tissue donor could save up to seven lives will give some peace to the grieving family. This bill allows families to commemorate the gift that their loved one gave to save the life of others. It will allow families to share their stories, and, importantly, this will make more Australians take notice and hopefully sign up to be an organ and tissue donor themselves and have the important conversation with their loved ones about their wishes. Their loved one's organs may have saved seven lives, but their story could have helped save many more.

Each state and territory has its own human tissue act which has varying limitations around disclosure of information that might identify an organ or tissue donor or a transplant recipient. The OTA and the Commonwealth-funded state and territory DonateLife agencies are limited in the ways they can deliver the national organ and tissue donation and organ transplantation program, and their community awareness activities. This bill will help tidy that up and make it easier to run education and awareness programs, which will be important in encouraging more and more Australians, from all states and territories, to become organ and tissue donors.

Privacy is vital to the functioning of our best-practice organ and tissue donation system, and this bill will make sure that this privacy is maintained. The bill will not facilitate direct contact between donor families and organ or tissue recipients. We understand that, whether you are receiving or donating an organ, it is a scary time in your life and in the lives of those around you, and some may wish to remain anonymous. This bill will make sure that all governments are committed to continuing to protect the rights of both donor families and transplant recipients who wish to remain anonymous. But being anonymous doesn't mean that you don't have gratitude towards those who have given you an organ or an interest in those who have received an organ from your loved one. So donor families and those who have received a transplant can continue to contact each other anonymously through their DonateLife agencies. This will allow families to see the impacts of their loved one's decision, and the recipients to express their gratitude.

The simple fact is that transplants save lives, and today I want to share the incredible story of someone in my electorate whose life was saved because they were able to get a transplant. His name is Liam Woods, and I can definitely say he's one of my mates as well. Eight years ago, Liam received a transplant after being diagnosed with cancer. Today Liam is doing great. He has beaten cancer, and he recently had the honour of representing our country. Liam pulled on the green and gold at the World Transplant Games in Perth in April, representing this country in football. While he was over there, he added a few more sports to his schedule, representing Australia in track athletics, in 100- and 200-metre events, and even played in the basketball team as well. Liam got to experience the Australian team dinner and was able to walk across the bridge in Perth and on to Optus Stadium, which he said gave him goosebumps. He said, 'To put the green and gold on and play against other countries is something I thought I'd never ever do,' and it's something that he will never ever forget. Liam excelled in these games, scoring a hat-trick in the final which helped Australia take home the gold, beating Italy 6-1. Not only has he recovered but he has a new chance to lead his life to the fullest. He is playing sport and playing at representative level.

The World Transplant Games is an incredible event. This year, there were 1,500 competitors from 46 countries, all together, as Liam said, to celebrate the gift of life. And the Aussies did us proud, finishing second overall and taking home 67 gold medals. Well done to everyone involved. Liam said that it was amazing to hear what some people had gone through to be able to participate in these games and that it was inspiring to meet others from Australia and also around the world who had gone through bone marrow, organ and tissue transplants. These games show how amazing and how valuable transplants are and why it is so important that everyone puts their name down to be an organ, blood and tissue donor.

Liam is a strong advocate for encouraging people to become donors. Liam's message to people is to either register to be an organ, tissue or blood donor or just read some of the inspirational stories of people that have had a second chance at life. Liam wants to go to the next games, which will be held in Dresden, Germany in 2025, to try to retain his gold medal. Liam, congratulations on all that you have achieved competing for Australia at the World Transplant Games and thank you for being such a strong voice on such an important issue. The Hunter is proud of you. Best of luck in 2025.

I want to use this opportunity to encourage everyone in the chamber and everyone back at home in the Hunter and also around Australia to become a donor. Stories like Liam's show how valuable organ donors are. You will truly be giving someone a second chance at a happy, healthy and long life. It is quick and easy to do. It only takes one minute online at DonateLife.gov.au, or three taps on your Medicare Express Plus app, so what are you waiting for? This is your chance to give someone life and leave an impact that will stay with someone for the rest of their life, long after you have gone.

This bill does the important and necessary job of harmonising the legislative requirements on disclosure nationally. This will help to create much-needed increased community awareness about donation and registration and assist donor families to tell their powerful stories and commemorate their loved ones in remembrance services. This bill will help more stories to be told and to be heard by many, many people. The more awareness being spread through their stories, the more Australians who will themselves put their hands up to be able to give the same gift. This bill will help ensure that more people have access to transplants, and the gift of an organ and tissue is a gift of life. I commend this bill to the House.

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