Kuwait, a small country with a population of four million, is multicultural, multilingual and multi-religion country with two third of the population being expats workers from South East Asia or the Middle East. Workers with low salaries often do not have their families with them in Kuwait.

Deceased organ procurement program started in 1996 and by the end of 2019, 999 organs and tissues were recovered from 307 deceased donors. Family approach in such a mixed society can be a challenge for coordinators.

Language and religious barriers
Despite employing coordinators from various countries, sometimes within a single country, like India, multiple languages are spoken making it difficult to have trained coordinators who can speak all languages.

Dealing with multiple religious beliefs is another challenge which has its impact on organ donation.

Misunderstanding brain death
Asking for organ donation from a heart beating deceased is not easy in a society which does not readily accept brain death but it is even more complicated when you approach the family over phone rather than face to face. There is often an element of mistrust when a stranger call them to inform them that their loved one is dead and asks for organ donation, when the message they often receive from friends is assuring them he is still alive in an ICU bed. In order to avoid such conflict it is important to make friends understand brain death.

Reaching expat communities
Most expats in Kuwait have associations bringing various communities together. Reaching them is essential to promote donation culture and to dispel any misunderstanding.

Despite difficulties, with 6-8 donors per million population, Kuwait is among top four countries in organ procurement in the Middle East.