Philippines to set world record on organ donor sign up

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines will attempt to set a new Guinness World Record on the most number of people tto sign up for an organ donation  on Friday.

Organized by the Philippine Network for Organ Sharing (Philnos), the event , dubbed as the Lifeline ng Bayan program, aims to muster  enough organ donor in a national scale.

The organizers set up six sign up sites for the organ pledge, including the Quezon City Memorial Cirle and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Sta. Mesa, Manila.

Department of Health Undersecretary Teodoro Herbosa said the DOH decided to put up the PhilNos to have a agency to build up a database for those who would want to donate organs.

"Dati kasi magulo nag aagawan at minsan may mga unethical practice dahil sa pagbebenta ng mga organ like kidney," Herbosa said during the sidelines of the start of the signup at the QC Memorial Circle.

Herbosa said the event also aims to raise public awareness about organ donation in the country.

"In the country alone, there are more than 23,000 people who undergo dialysis due to kidney failure," he said.

But with Philnos'  campaign, Herbosa expressed confidence that the organ donation will be more acceptable to Filipinos.

He said the one who will pledge to donate his or her organ will have to inform his family or next of kin about the donation to avoid any legal problems in the future.

Herbosa also expressed confidence that the Philippines will set a new world record in the category, noting the number of students at the PUP campus alone.

"Dun palang sa PUP mahigit 5,000 na nung nag dry run sila," he said.

The simultaneous sign up at the sites started around 9 a.m.      

The current world record holder for the one hour (over 2,000) and eight hour span (more than 10,000) for a sign up categories are held by India.