The Idol-Revealed 'That Tattoo'... MZ Generation Certifying Organ Donation Pledge

'Organ Donation Pledge' Signing Rate Highest Among 20s and 30s
Promoted Through Sharing Reviews and Even Tattoos

Recently, there has been an increase in people, especially among the 20s and 30s age groups, showing interest in organ donation, and cases of getting 'organ donation tattoos' to express their intention to donate have also been on the rise.

In July 2018, a firefighter working at Sejong Fire Station gained attention by revealing a tattoo on the left side of his chest expressing his wish to be an organ donor. [Image source=Instagram capture]

As of the 20th, there were 2,096 posts on the social media (SNS) platform Instagram certifying organ donation tattoos. Organ donation tattoos are usually done after pledging to become an organ donor, featuring designs that resemble electrocardiogram graphs along with information indicating that the person is an organ donor hopeful or their blood type.

The 'MZ generation,' who are the most active in pledging organ donation, not only actively share their organ donation pledge experiences on SNS but also get tattoos to show that they are organ donor hopefuls.

In fact, on the 17th, the National Organ, Tissue, and Blood Management Service under the Ministry of Health and Welfare reported that the number of people registered as organ and tissue donation hopefuls from January this year to the 12th of this month reached 140,800, a 16% increase compared to the same period last year (128,000).

Furthermore, according to the Korea Organ Donation Agency as of September, from January 2021 to the 6th of this month, a total of 198,369 people registered as organ donation hopefuls with the National Organ, Tissue, and Blood Management Service. Among them, people in their 20s accounted for 55,943 (20.8%), the largest share, followed by those in their 30s with 29,615 (15%). This means that more than 4 out of 10 registered hopefuls are in their 20s and 30s.

Experts interpret this as a narrowing psychological distance toward organ donation and a spreading consensus on its necessity as the years go by.

Previously, in July 2018, a firefighter working at Sejong Fire Station gained attention by revealing a tattoo expressing his wish to donate organs on his upper left chest, and in July 2021, Soyeon of the popular girl group (G)I-DLE drew fans' interest by revealing her organ donation hopeful tattoo. As organ donation-related topics have become more talked about, younger age groups such as those in their 20s have had more opportunities to think about organ donation.

However, since only about 3% of South Korea's population are registered organ donation hopefuls, there are voices calling for more participation and encouragement.