Organ Donors, by Donor Type, Sex and Province

This indicator provides a breakdown of all persons in Canada who donated 1 or more organs used for transplantation, by donor type, sex and province.

Total frequency counts can provide researchers, health care providers and the public with an idea of where solid organ donation stands in Canada

Data updated:
Data availability: to (calendar years)
Geographic coverage
Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia
Reporting level
National, Province/Territory
Calculation

Counts of donors are based on data submitted to the Canadian Organ Replacement Register (CORR) by each organ procurement organization (OPO) or hospital. A donor is defined as a person, living or deceased, who donates 1 or more organs that are used for transplantation. No adjustments or standardizations are made to the reported results. CORR collects data for the following solid organs: kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas (including islets) and intestine.

Denominator

Not applicable

Numerator

The number and type of organ donor submitted to CORR by each OPO or hospital

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Name

Organ Donors, by Donor Type, Sex and Province

Short/Other Names

Not applicable

Description

Breakdown of all persons in Canada who donated 1 or more organs used for transplantation, by donor type, sex and province

Rationale

A major limiting factor for organ transplants is the availability of organ donors. Knowledge of the number of actual donors can inform strategies to increase organ donation and increase the conversion rate of potential donors to actual donors.

Interpretation

Total frequency counts can provide researchers, health care providers and the public with an idea of where solid organ donation stands in Canada

HSP Framework Dimension

Improve health status of Canadians

Areas of Need

Not applicable

Targets/Benchmarks

Not applicable

Available Data Years

to

Geographic Coverage

  • Newfoundland and Labrador
  • New Brunswick
  • Nova Scotia
  • Ontario
  • Manitoba
  • Saskatchewan
  • Alberta
  • British Columbia

Reporting Level/Disaggregation

  • National
  • Province/Territory
  • Breakdown by sex
  • Breakdown by donor type

Indicator Results

Web Tool:
CORR Organ Donors

Update Frequency

Every year

Latest Results Update Date

Updates

Not applicable

Description

Counts of donors are based on data submitted to the Canadian Organ Replacement Register (CORR) by each organ procurement organization (OPO) or hospital. A donor is defined as a person, living or deceased, who donates 1 or more organs that are used for transplantation. No adjustments or standardizations are made to the reported results. CORR collects data for the following solid organs: kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas (including islets) and intestine.

Type of Measurement

Number

Frequency total

Denominator

Description:

Not applicable

Inclusions:

Not applicable

Exclusions:

Not applicable

Numerator

Description:

The number and type of organ donor submitted to CORR by each OPO or hospital

Inclusions:

Deceased donors are donors who originated in Canada and who have had at least one organ used for transplantation. Living donors include donors with a biological (related) and/or emotional (unrelated) relationship to the transplant recipient, as well as donors with no relationship to the recipient.

Method of Adjustment

Not applicable

Adjustment Applied

None

Geographic Assignment

Place of service

Data Sources

  • CORR

Caveats and Limitations

Data from Quebec was not included for this table because of significant under-reporting.

Province refers to the province of the hospital that identified the donor (for deceased donors) or to the hospital responsible for the transplant surgery (for living donors). Users should note the distinction between province of treatment, which generally reflects service availability, and province of patient residence. New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador do not have transplant hospitals and are therefore not shown in living donor statistics. A complete list of programs submitting donor data is available in Table 4 of Data Quality Documentation for Users: Canadian Organ Replacement Register, 2010 to 2019 Data (PDF).

CORR is a longitudinal database, following patients over time. Reporting centres may submit changes/updates for any particular year on an ongoing basis. As a result, data is subject to change and may differ from previously published reports.

This data comes from donor-level data provided by organ procurement organizations and hospitals across the country. It may differ slightly from the data provided in e-Statistics on Organ Transplants, Waiting Lists and Donors, a report that is based on aggregate counts provided by organ procurement organizations.

Trending Issues

An overview of data quality issues can be found in Data Quality Documentation for Users: Canadian Organ Replacement Register, 2010 to 2019 Data (PDF).

Comments

Not applicable

References

Not applicable

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