Trained And Dedicated Transplant Co-Ordinators To Be Hired To Counsel Relatives To Go In For Donations
Mumbai : While 2,500 people are waiting in line for receiving organs by way of cadaver donations, public hospitals have been lagging behind in turning brain-stem deaths into successful organ donations.
A recent report from Zonal Transplantation Consultation Committee (ZTCC) revealed this and ZTCC sources told FPJ that while the performance of private hospitals is remarkable in this respect, public hospitals have been lagging behind in turning brain-stem deaths into successful organ donations.
Public hospitals claim that they do not have dedicated and trained counsellors and co-ordinators for counselling of relatives regarding organ donations. Dr Ramesh Bharmal, Dean of Nair Hospital said, “It is very hard to make the relatives understand the cause and purpose of such donations. Since most of the people come from a less educated background, they have their own set of beliefs. There is a need for more professional counsellors who can put forth the message in a strong and convincing way.”
Shedding more light on the issue, Dr Avinash Supe, Dean of KEM Hospital told FPJ, “Private hospitals cater to educated people who understand the procedures and the cause, which makes their job easy. But in our case (public hospitals), it is just the other way round. The relatives of the deceased patients are not willing to donate organs and this is the reason why we fail to contribute.”
Speaking on the matter, Dr Sujata Patwardhan, general secretary of ZTCC said, “Public hospitals need to push themselves so that they can also contribute towards organ donations. There have been many reasons due to which they have been unable to carry out cadaver donations. But now, we will make sure that public hospitals are also roped in for organ donations. Also, we will be hiring dedicated trained transplant co-ordinators who will help public hospitals for their contribution of organ donations in near future.”
Manasi Tahalani
