The event, opened by Jaume Tort, Director of the Catalan Transplant Organization (OCATT), Dr Raquel Sánchez Valle, Medical Director of the Hospital Clínic Barcelona, and Dr Àngel Ruiz, Head of the Transplant Donation and Coordination Section, highlighted the importance of organ donation as an essential part of end-of-life care. The event also marked 40 years of donation after circulatory death (DCD) at the Hospital Clínic Barcelona, a pioneering programme that has contributed decisively to the advancement of transplantation in the country.
In his address, Dr Àngel Ruiz highlighted the track record and dedication of the entire team, recalling that in 1985 the Hospital Clínic Barcelona created the first Transplant Coordination Team in Spain. That pioneering structure was established to meet the growing need for organization and support for organ and tissue transplant programmes. Four decades later, the service remains a key component in ensuring the growth of donations and improving patient access to transplantation. The coordination team is made up of doctors and specialist nursing professionals who work to identify and manage new donors, coordinate multi-organ harvesting, ensure the preservation and distribution of organs, and provide support and guidance to families at times of great emotional complexity.
During the inauguration, Jaume Tort emphasized the complexity of the transplantation process and the importance of coordination in ensuring its success, highlighting the Clínic’s role as one of the leading centres in the Catalan healthcare system. Dr Raquel Sánchez Valle recalled that “when one patient dies, another life begins”, highlighting the commitment and sensitivity of the professionals involved in the donation process, as well as the generosity of the families who make it possible.
40 years of donation after circulatory death
The commemoration of 40 years of donation after circulatory death was one of the key highlights of the day. Dr Josep Maria Campistol, Director General of the Hospital Clínic Barcelona, recalled that the centre’s first donation after circulatory death occurred on 3 October 1986, as part of a kidney transplant that represented a major medical and organizational challenge. Dr Campistol underlined the innovative spirit that has characterized the programme from the very outset, as well as the commitment of the professionals and their constant capacity for adaptation and research.
From its inception until the end of 2025, 1,078 potential donors have been considered for the uncontrolled donation after circulatory death programme, with 380 organ donors (with or without tissue donation) and 284 additional tissue-only donors. Of the total cases, 61.5% went on to donate. The role of the Medical Emergency System (SEM) in the programme is noteworthy, as it is an indispensable part of enabling donation during an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest following an advanced life support process that fails to resuscitate the patient.
Donation after circulatory death—which takes place when organ donation occurs after the patient has suffered an irreversible cardiac arrest—has become a fundamental way to increase the possibilities for transplantation. This type of donation requires exceptional coordination between multiple care teams and highly precise logistics to preserve the viability of the organs, and over these 40 years has become one of the pillars of transplant activity at the Clínic and in Catalonia.
The Clínic, a leading hospital in organ transplantation
Data from 2025 reinforce the Clínic’s position as a leading centre for transplant activity. Over the past year, 294 organ transplants have been performed, including 184 kidney, 70 liver, 17 heart, and 23 pancreas transplants. The centre has also collaborated on 8 paediatric transplants performed at Hospital Sant Joan de Déu. In parallel, the Clínic has managed 40 deceased donors—7 in a brain-dead state and 33 in cardiac arrest—a figure that demonstrates the strength and experience of the coordination team. The donation programme has also been consolidated in the context of the assisted dying procedure, with 5 effective donors, and 234 tissue donations have been managed. In the field of haematopoietic stem cell transplantation, the centre is the second most active in Catalonia, with 105 procedures. In total, 1,356 organ transplants were performed in Catalonia during 2025, a figure that maintains the Catalan system’s position among the most advanced in the world.
