An advocacy workshop for living organ donors was conducted by MOHAN Foundation on February 12, 2023, at Abu Sarovar Portico in Chennai. The workshop was part of TRIOMPH (Transplant Recipients of India & Organ failure patients - a Movement to Provide Hope), an initiative of MOHAN Foundation. The workshop was attended by transplant physicians, surgeons, transplant coordinators, living organ donors and caregivers of transplant recipients.  The workshop focussed on making living donation free of coercion and health insurance for living organ donors and transplant recipients.

Ms Jaya Jairam, Project Director, MOHAN Foundation presented an introduction to living donor transplant program in India and health insurance schemes not available for living donors. The discussion stressed the need for a multi-centre study on living organ donors. These studies would aid in the understanding of the facts and the necessity of health insurance for both living organ donors and transplant recipients by the health insurance firms.

A summary of the legal requirements and ethical concerns related to living organ donations was presented by Dr Sunil Shroff, Managing Trustee, MOHAN Foundation. According to the Global Observatory on Donation and Transplantation (https://www.transplant-observatory.org/), the living donor transplant accounted for 91% of the kidney transplants performed in India in 2021 (8,275 out of 9,105 transplants). The growing numbers indicate the need for establishing independent living donor advocates (ILDA) in India to promote safe evaluation and care for living donors. The panel discussed on outlining the roles of ILDA and guidelines for implementation, standard training for ILDA, scope and limitations in the Indian context.