The mother of a young man who died after a road accident said organ donation was a light in the family’s darkest days and called on others to donate in 2026.
However Dr Catherine Motherway, former head of the Limerick intensive care unit, warned donor numbers were lower this year. HSE figures show 202 organ transplants for 2025 thanks to 97 organ donors, living and deceased, and their families. Some people donated more than one organ.
Martina Goggin’s son Éamonn was just 26 when he died 20 years ago.
“The benefits of organ donation to the donor family cannot be over emphasised,” she said.
“When our son died following a road crash, my husband and I would have been devastated if we had not been given the opportunity of donating his organs.”
She has spoken before of the crash near Spiddal in Galway, saying it left her son on life support for five days afterwards.
“The comfort and consolation to us in knowing our son, Éamonn, made the noblest act of generosity by giving the gift of life to others is like a light that has continued to shine even on the darkest days,” she said.
Under new Irish laws everyone is assumed to be a donor unless they object using an online register. Families are still asked for consent if the patient cannot communicate.
Ms Goggins said: “I feel it is so important that every person who wishes to, is offered the possibility of becoming an organ donor, and the change in legislation will, hopefully, ensure this happens.”
Dr Motherway thanked donors and families on behalf of the HSE Organ Donation and Transplant Ireland.
“Organ donation is an incredible gift and has a life transforming impact on the organ recipients. For many patients, the offer of an organ may be life-saving,” she said.
However she said: “The number of organ donors this year is down on previous years. We know that this is not due to people not choosing to be organ donors. None of the potential organ donors this year had their names on the opt-out register.”
During 2024 some 114 people donated organs.
“Unfortunately, every year people die while waiting for a transplant,” she said, adding: “they are all in our thoughts and prayers.” (they are all in our thoughts and prayers).
Her concerns are shared by the Irish Kidney Association which called for increased investment in services. It said the drop in donors has “profound implications” for people relying on this life-saving care.
“The reality facing our healthcare system is stark,” the association warned. “The number of people requiring dialysis continues to rise significantly, placing unsustainable pressure on patients, families, and healthcare resources.”
It called for expansion of an ongoing hospital audit to identify further potential donors.
In 2025, 68 deceased people donated organs and 29 living donors were involved. The 202 transplants included 33 livers, nine hearts and 15 lungs and the majority were kidneys.
Both the HSE chief clinical officer Dr Colm Henry and health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill expressed their thanks to donors and families. They urged people to have the donor conversation with family and friends this year.
