On April 3, 2024, MOHAN Foundation was invited by Lions Club Rishikesh for an awareness talk on organ donation at Hotel Fork & Knife in Rishikesh. Mr. Sanchit Arora, Project Leader at MF stationed at AIIMS Rishikesh, was the speaker for the talk. The invitation was extended by Mr. Gopal Narang, a member of the club and a social worker in Rishikesh.
Lions Club Rishikesh participates in a variety of service projects, including organizing Blood Donation Camps, Eye Operation Camps, Health Checkup Camps, Polio Plus, providing free education to the needy, and distribution of Books and Stationery, which have been regular activities for many years.
Mr. Sanchit Arora was felicitated by Mr. Rajeev Khurana, Secretary of Lions Club Rishikesh, and Mr. Gopal Narang.
The session commenced with Sanchit inviting participants to share their knowledge about organ donation. He then elaborated on the current status of organ donation in India, covering various topics in detail:
* What is organ donation, and why is it important to donate organs?
* Who can be an organ donor?
* Explanation of live and deceased donors
* Organ donation during life and after death
* Brain death
* Differences between coma and brain death
* Eye donation and steps required to preserve corneas after death
* Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994
* Role of the MOHAN Foundation
* What an individual can do to contribute to this noble cause
* Myths and facts about organ donation
Experience shared by a participant:
One of the member shared his experience of a family member being on a ventilator and declared brain dead, but the medical team did not approach them for organ donation. He believes that if someone had initiated the conversation about organ donation at that time, their family might have considered it.
Overall, the session was highly interactive, with participants enthusiastically contributing to the discussion and posing numerous queries. Some of the questions raised during the session included:
* Is Coma the same as brain death?
* Is there a specific time period allocated for the retrieval of organs and tissues?
* How is the allocation of organs done by government and private hospitals?
* How can someone pledge for organ donation?
The session provided an opportunity for around 15 members to get a detailed insight into organ donation, and many decided to take the pledge for organ donation once they got home and discussed it with their family
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