The decision by the parents of the 13-year-old girl who passed away on Wednesday to donate her organs was truly commendable, noble and a courageous thing to do.

By their decision, they offered the hope of life – or at least hope of a better life – to people who are ill and who needed this noble gesture to live more comfortably and probably longer. At the same time, her parents can at least have the knowledge that a part of their young daughter is still alive in others.

The young girl died three days after being hit by a car in Mriehel. A friend of hers, a 17-year-old, died on the spot.

Organ donation is widespread all over the world, yet in Malta – as with other important medical issues – we are still lagging behind when, in fact, the donation of an organ is perhaps the biggest gift one could give.

Apart from the noble gesture in itself, the parents of that young girl have really rendered a service to this country simply by going public about their decision. The father has in fact said that it was at first a very difficult decision to take, but his wife quickly convinced him that it was the best thing to do. He gave out a clear message – if there is a chance to help others, then, yes, donate organs.

There should be nothing taboo at all about the subject. It is a praiseworthy gesture to give your heart, for example, after your death and allow someone else to prolong his or her own life. These are the realities of today’s modern scientific era. Such donations have helped others live longer thanks to the generous gestures of others, on many occasions complete strangers.

As Maltese, we always want the best of everything, even healthcare. But we must of course realise that doctors cannot produce body organs; only we, as individuals, have the power to donate our own. One always has to put oneself in the shoes of another person to see their plight and if people really thought about it – if they were ill, for example with a weak heart – would they not want someone to donate theirs to them? The majority will surely answer that they would.

However, asking the question from the other perspective – whether people are willing to give up their organs, or those of a member of their family – would they? Many would, but probably not the majority.

This has to change.

There is nothing to be ashamed of. If anything, one should be proud of such a gesture, as this family should be.

We do, after all, donate blood. Giving organs follows the same concept of helping others.

So we should learn an important lesson from this family. And we should listen to their appeal for us to enroll in organ donation schemes.

It is very simple: all one has to do is go to hospital and fill in a form that stipulates which organs one would like to donate.

But at the end of the day, the most important lesson to learn from this horrendous incident is the courage that the 13-year-old girl’s parents have shown. It is a heart-wrenching story of courage, humanity, generosity and hope in the face of loss. We should all learn this lesson from this family.