Indian Transplant Newsletter. Vol.20 Issue No.63. July 2021 - October 2021
Print ISSN 0972 - 1568

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya urges citizens to pledge organs

Indian Transplant Newsletter.
Vol.20 Issue No.63. July 2021 - October 2021
Print ISSN 0972 - 1568
Print PDF


Every year in India, thousands of patients in need of an organ transplant die waiting for a suitable donor. Concerning that, the Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya said India has to pick up pace to match the wide gap between the need and availability of organs for transplant. On 14th September 2021, a virtual event was organised by Times of India in association with Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital as part of their initiative – Times Organ Donation Drive, 2021.

The eminent panelists for the event were Dr. Naresh Trehan (Chairman of Medanta Hospital), Dr. Arti Vij (Head of Organ Donation Programme, AIIMS, New Delhi), Dr. Mohamed Rela, Chairman and Managing Director of Dr. Rela Institute and Medical Centre, Chennai), Dr. Sunil Shroff (Managing Trustee of MOHAN Foundation, Chennai), Dr. Santosh Shetty (Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, Mumbai) and Dr. S K Mathur (President of Zonal Transplant Coordination Committee, Mumbai).

There were many suggestions to improve the donation rate in the country from the panelists. These included –

1. Dr.Trehan suggested requirement of sensitizing people and doctors, devising internal hospital mechanisms for identifying brain-dead patients and approaching relatives for organ donation.

2. Dr. Rela felt that governments in all the states had the resources to boost organ donation and make transplant surgeries accessible to all.

3. Dr. Shroff said one strategy to boost the rate was to license all 540 government and private medical college hospitals for organ donation as they had the infrastructure to at least undertake organ retrieval. This would not only boost the numbers but also allow deceased donation to take place in all 28 states and 8 union territories in India rather than just 16 currently.

4. Dr. S K Mathur, spoke about the Maharashtra model wherein a multipronged approach involving hospitals' CEOs, intensivists and counsellors to increase organ donation numbers.

Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya deliberated on the above suggestions and added that the organ donation campaign by The Times of India has the vigour, energy and the awareness which is required to save human lives.


To cite : Sujatha S, Shroff S. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya urges citizens to pledge organs. Indian Transplant Newsletter. Vol.20 Issue No.63. July 2021 - October 2021.
Available at:
https://www.itnnews.co.in/indian-transplant-newsletter/issue63/Union-Health-Minister-Mansukh-Mandaviya-urges-citizens-to-pledge-organs-1128.htm

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