Background: Amid restrictions on hospital visits during the COVID-19 pandemic, the need emerged for a non-face-to-face system capable of quickly and efficiently providing notification of suspected cases of brain death. In response, the Korea Organ Donation Agency introduced an electronic notification system based on digital documentation in 2020. This study assessed the system’s effectiveness by analyzing changes in brain death notifications and organ donation cases, and evaluated medical staff’s satisfaction at hospitals within the Central Branch that have adopted the system.
Methods: From 2021 to 2024, we examined hospitals operating the electronic notification system within the Central Branch (including Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi, Gangwon, and Jeju regions). Changes in the number of brain death notifications and organ donations were analyzed by duration of system operation. Annual data from hospitals in their first (20 hospitals) and second year of operation (14 hospitals) were compared. A satisfaction survey was conducted with 144 medical staff members from hospitals operating the system for over 1 year (6 hospitals) and over 2 years (7 hospitals). The survey evaluated 5 aspects (efficiency, work support, accuracy, contribution to donation activation, and overall satisfaction) on a 100-point scale.
Results: In hospitals with 1 year of system operation, the number of brain death notifications rose from 560 to 768 cases, marking a 37% increase, and the number of organ donations rose from 78 to 108 cases, a 38% increase. Among hospitals with 2 years of operation, notifications decreased by 16%, from 600 to 502 cases, and donations fell by 35%, from 93 to 60 cases, compared to the previous year. However, compared to pre-operation figures, notifications increased by 24% from 404 to 502 cases, and donations increased by 2% from 59 to 60 cases, indicating that system operation has had a positive long-term impact.
The satisfaction survey revealed that hospitals with over one year of system operation had an average score of 88.0, while those operating for more than two years scored 91.7 on average. This indicates a trend of increasing satisfaction with longer system use. In particular, staff at hospitals operating the system for over two years expressed high satisfaction regarding the system’s practical effectiveness.
Conclusion: The electronic notification system contributed to an initial increase in both brain death notifications and organ donations. The decline observed in the second year is likely attributable to a broader nationwide decline in donations in 2024 and shifts in the medical environment. Nevertheless, the system maintained growth compared to pre-implementation levels, demonstrating sustained effectiveness. Furthermore, longer periods of operation were associated with higher satisfaction and increased utilization. These findings provide a valuable policy foundation for enhancing and expanding the electronic notification system moving forward.