Ethnically sensitive messengers: an exploration of racial attitudes of health-care workers and organ procurement officers.

This study examined attitudes of organ procurement employees toward black and Hispanic clients. Participants completed the Situational Attitude Scale (SAS). Findings showed that participants favored the person of color over the neutral, race-unspecified person when the person of color was in a subservient role. While the SAS items were not specific to organ donation scenarios, some inferences may be can be made. White organ procurement employees, dealing with white people significant to the donor, may experience little anxiety when placed in the role of service provider. However, when dealing with donors of color, white procurement employees may experience some cognitive dissonance. White employees may be comfortable being served by people of color, but uncomfortable serving people of color. This feeling, coupled with a lack of cross-cultural understanding, may create a communication barrier between procurement and donor communities.