Choo Li Ying, 16

School: Punggol Secondary School

Topic: Roadshows are the most effective way to engage, educate and encourage all age groups on organ donation

Award: Merit, Senior Category, 2025

Every day, 17 people die waiting for an organ transplant, but one donor can only save up to eight lives. Organ donation is not just a medical act; it is an act of courage and bravery that can change and impact many lives. Despite this, there is still a significant shortage of donors and donor organs, not just in Singapore, but across the globe as well. Hence, in Singapore and many countries, roadshows in heartlands have become one of the most effective ways to reach out to the public. These roadshows serve multiple purposes, such as engaging the communities, educating the public on organ donation and encouraging individuals across all age groups to consider this important cause.

Firstly, the reason why roadshows are so effective in promoting organ donation is because they can directly address misconceptions and engage the public through face-to-face interactions. As we all know, organ donation has many benefits, being able to save lives. A single donor alone is able to not just save and improve a single life, but save up to seven other lives. Despite this, many are unwilling to do so, be it due to cultural and religious taboos, misconceptions, fear or simply just a lack of awareness about the cause. Thus, public education is important to bridge these gaps and clear the air of misconceptions surrounding organ donation. Although there are already methods such as posters and online advertisements, these lack actual physical interactions and engagements and as such, people will tend to ignore it. But, this is where roadshows come in as they are able to overcome the shortcomings that these other methods have. 

So, why do roadshows work? Organising roadshows in the heartlands – an area filled with different communities and families – helps to bring information directly to people. Unlike other events that require registration and travelling, roadshows do not require any registration and are often set up where there are a lot of people, such as community centres or near MRT stations, making it accessible to a wider range of people. This convenience and the absence of unnecessary registrations encourages greater public participation. For example, someone passing by may come across the roadshow and stop out of curiosity, which can lead to them being engaged and learning about the cause through the roadshow’s interactive booths and talks, and eventually, a lot more people will join in and be aware about organ donation. Not just that, roadshows are able to reach out to all age groups. Roadshows contain many things, from games and activities for children and teenagers to talks and ‘question and answer’ sessions for adults and seniors. These interactions at roadshows ensure that everyone is included, spreading awareness regarding organ donation to more people. 

In addition to being engaging, roadshows are powerful tools for education and clearing up common myths about organ donation. In many cultures, including Singapore’s multiracial society, there are many taboos and misconceptions regarding organ donation. One such myth is that some religions forbid organ donation or that organ donation can interfere with funeral procedures. As such, roadshows are an ideal platform to clear and address these concerns and myths surrounding organ donation, reassuring the public about the worthy cause. Moreover, many people are unaware of organ donation in general. These roadshows serve as a way to educate and inform people about it. Roadshows can clarify doubts about organ donation, explaining the different policies and the implications of organ donation. When people are more aware about the cause, they are able to make more informed decisions and this could lead to medical centres seeing more willing organ donors. 

However, education alone is not enough. Other methods of spreading awareness on organ donation only educates people, but does not really push people to follow through and donate to become an organ donor. This is where roadshows are much more effective than other methods. Most roadshows have booths where people can sign up for organ donation and collect brochures regarding organ donation to read later on. Roadshows will often use motivational methods to encourage people to sign up, from personal stories about organ donation to using digital platforms to register pledges, making it much more appealing and encouraging people to take that step to become an organ donor. More importantly, the reason many people do not follow through with organ donation is the lack of communication with their families. Although many people agree with the idea of organ donation, not many actually do it as they have never discussed this topic with their loved ones and fear what they would say about it. These roadshows can serve as a starting point, encouraging families to have these important conversations, and can in turn spur one to actually take action regarding organ donation. 

Despite how effective and beneficial roadshows are, there are many challenges that they face. Firstly, organising a roadshow requires a lot of manpower, funding and consistent updating. If there is a lack of these, resources and volunteers may be overextended and stretched thin, and engagement and interactions may decline. Secondly, although the roadshows can reach out to many people, there are still parts of the population that are not included, such as those with disabilities that may find it hard to even just leave their homes and attend these roadshows, leading to this part of our population being unaware about organ donation. Lastly, while roadshows can record the number of people who sign up and engage in the activities and talks on organ donation, it is much more difficult to record the number of people who will actually act upon it and take action in the future, limiting the lasting effects of roadshows. 

However, these challenges do not mean the end for roadshows. There are many ways to overcome these challenges and create a lasting impact, creating a more effective roadshow that can spread more awareness on organ donation. Firstly, roadshow organisers can partner with local organisations such as Residents’ Committees, schools and healthcare institutions. Through these partnerships, responsibilities can be shared and these roadshows can be better planned, more resource efficient and able to reach out to more people without having to put strain on a single organiser. Secondly, to reach those who find it difficult to leave their homes, roadshow organisers can include digital alternatives and options, such as virtual roadshows, to ensure that these people are able to receive information and learn about organ donation regardless of their physical abilities. Lastly, to ensure long term impact, roadshows can implement follow-up strategies such as sending emails or short educational videos or brochures to those who had signed up during the roadshows. These can serve as reminders and increasing the likelihood of people taking action later on as well. 

I do believe that roadshows in heartlands is the most effective and ideal way to promote and bring awareness to organ donation. These roadshows are able to help those in need of an organ transplant, and engage, educate and encourage people from all walks of life to take action. These roadshows play an important role in changing and correcting perceptions on organ donation and build a more informed and thoughtful community. While there are challenges these roadshows have to face, there is no doubt that they can be overcome and play an important role in raising awareness towards organ donation, not just here in Singapore but around the world as well. Organ donation is all about taking that first step, it is about compassion and the willingness to help others, and it is through these roadshows that this selfless act can begin.

Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions expressed in the essays for the Live On Festival 2025 are those of the participants and are not endorsed by the National Organ Transplant Unit (Ministry of Health).

To learn more about organ donation and organ transplantation in Singapore, please visit www.liveon.gov.sg