What is an essential requirement for medical personnel to honor a donor card?

The essential requirement for medical personnel to honor a donor card is that it represents the expressed wishes of the donor regarding organ donation. In many jurisdictions, the law recognizes the legality and binding nature of a donor card itself, which indicates an individual’s consent to donate their organs upon death.

While it is often ideal for a donor's family to be aware of their wishes, and family members may be consulted, the donor card carries the donor's intent, and this intent should typically be honored without requiring additional permission from family members. Medical personnel are trained to respect the legal documents that reflect an individual’s wishes regarding organ donation, and the presence of a donor card generally suffices to demonstrate the donor's intent, negating the need for family consent.

Legal documentation of intent, a witness, or a notarized statement may be necessary in some contexts, but the existence of a donor card is usually sufficient evidence of a person’s desire to donate, making family permission not a mandatory requirement in honoring that document.