Determination and Comparison of the Attitudes of Nursing and Theology Students Toward Organ Donation: Descriptive and Cross-Sectional Study

This study was conducted to determine and compare the attitudes of nursing and Theology students toward organ donation. This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted with 350 nursing and Theology students in Türkiye. An Information Form and the Organ Donation Attitudes Scale were used for data collection. Data were analyzed using the SPSS 26.0 software. The mean age of the students participating in the study was 22.59 ± 4.48 years, and 66% were female. 55.7% of the students were Theology students, and 44.3% were nursing students. The mean score for humanity and moral conviction was 92.43 ± 20.72, the mean score for fears of medical neglect was 28.89 ± 9.98, and the mean score for fears of bodily mutilation was 32.13 ± 10.21. It was found that nursing students' positive attitudes (humanity and moral conviction) toward organ donation were significantly higher, and negative attitudes (fears of medical neglect and fears of bodily mutilation) were significantly lower than Theology students (P < .05). The students' attitudes toward humanity and moral conviction regarding organ donation are positive, while their attitudes toward fears of medical neglect and bodily mutilation are negative. Nursing students' attitudes toward both humanity and moral conviction, and fears of medical neglect and bodily mutilation are more positive than the attitudes of Theology students. It is recommended that informative training on organ donation and transplantation processes should be organized in cooperation with nurses and religious leaders.