If you couldn't tell, I'm also a Law and Order fan
Same as I got po'd at Oprah and Cojo when they neglected to tell their legions of fans that transplantation is a treatment and not a cure...
On both our popular soaps at least one charater has had a transplant (liver and kidney). They make it look like its a very simple procedure, and getting a match is incredibly easy. They dont show anything about follow up care, medication side effects, nothing. The character has the op, recovers in a few days, and is back to normal. I know its only a show, but I think they should be a little more realistic about it and not make people beleive it is no big deal.
It's just my opinion, but I believe that the number of donated kidneys would go down if the general public is made aware that a transplant is not a "cure" for the recipient but simply a "treatment", which may be short or long term. A contributing factor in that decision would probably be that they do not know how difficult it is for most people to function on 3 x weekly dialysis, and how much better most people are after transplant. A little knowledge can do more harm than good, which is why as someone suggested, we need an in depth program like "20/20" to educate the public.