Telangana tops in cadaver organ donation

Telangana recently was adjudged by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as the number one Indian State for conducting the largest number of cadaver organ donation

Hyderabad: Telangana recently was adjudged by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as the number one Indian State for conducting the largest number of cadaver organ donation. The rise of Telangana to the top, however, involved a series of unique measures implemented over the years under Jeevandan, the state’s cadaver organ donation initiative.

Maintaining transparency has been the key component in sustaining donor organ retrieval from brain-dead patients and allocation to needy patients. To ensure this, the entire allocation process of donor organs is online in Jeevandan. The success of the online system and the transparent guidelines has led other states like Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir and Odisha adopt the model.

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Another measure taken to encourage organ donation, especially among the younger generation, is the inclusion of a chapter on the importance of organ donation in class 10 state syllabus. Senior health officials said there is a lot of recall value about Jeevandan and the importance of organ donation among the next generation.

Almost all the brain-dead or cadaver organ donations are trauma related i.e., they are road accident cases that are treated as Medico Legal Cases (MLCs) and involves police investigation.

In the last few years, Jeevandan has been collaborating with Telangana police to spread awareness among police personnel on the importance of brain dead declaration and the much-needed support they can provide while dealing with accident cases. The coordination with the police has ensured the implementation of green corridor systems, whenever there is a need to transport donor organs between hospitals and airports.

Every month, Jeevandan also conducts 15 to 20 awareness sessions among people from various walks of life. To encourage cadaver donation, permanent grief counselors-cum-organ donation counselors have been appointed at Gandhi Hospital, NIMS and Osmania General Hospital (OGH).

‘Closely working with govt hospitals’

We are trying to emulate States like Tamil Nadu and Kerala where there is a well-developed ecosystem for brain-dead declaration. We are trying to establish a proper audit system that will encourage government hospitals towards brain-dead declaration. We are closely working with government hospitals in Nizamabad, Warangal, Mahabubnagar, OGH, Gandhi Hospital to create awareness, said In-charge and Head of Nephrology, NIMS, Dr G Swarnalatha.

• On insurance coverage and regular reviews

Regular reviews by the Health Minister have helped Jeevandan in setting goals and achieving them. Poor people now can undergo transplantation free of cost under Aarogyasri and even get drugs for a lifetime after the surgery.

• On the role of private hospitals

There is no denying the important role of private hospitals in organ donation. In fact, government hospitals like OGH, Gandhi and NIMS have benefitted because donor organs are shared, when organ donation takes place in private hospitals.