On August 21, 2021, MOHAN Foundation was invited to an expert panel discussion organized by the NGO, Khwaab Zindagi ke to discuss various concepts related to organ donation. Dr. Muneet Kaur Sahi, Programme Manager, MOHAN Foundation, NCR office was invited as one of the experts for the panel discussion.
Khwaab Zindagi ke is an NGO founded by Priya Singh and Ina Singh in March 2021 that aims to bring sunshine to the lives of underserved sections of the society that require intervention. It works for empowering women, improving environment and animal welfare in India. Khwaab Zindagi ke is now on a mission to spread awareness on organ donation among the public.
The other panelists were Dr. Karan Thakur, Vice president Operations and Public affairs, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals; Mr. Devendra Kumar Gupta, Founder and CEO Ladli Foundation Trust, & Dr. Sourabh Sharma, Project Manager, ORGAN India. The agenda for the discussion was to determine the awareness and knowledge about organ donation among the general population and to find out the factors that influence a person’s decision to donate as well as barriers to organ donation in our country.
The session was initiated by Ms. Ina Singh, Co- founder Khwaab Zindagi ke who welcomed the attendees and the panel experts. She also threw some light on the need for awareness on organ donation and the gift of life that organ donation is. The moderators for the evening were Dr. Farida Mesiwala and Ms. Shoma Chatterji who introduced the panel experts and their areas of work with their significant contributions.
The panel discussion was initiated with a discussion on the status of organ donation and patients requiring transplants in India. Dr. Muneet spoke about the history of organ donation, the mission of MOHAN Foundation and the road to creating awareness on the said subject in India. She also threw light on the concepts of living and deceased organ donation and explained the organs that can be donated after circulatory death and brain death respectively. Dr Muneet also discussed the factors affecting organ donation rates in India and the wide multitude of factors which can act as barriers to organ donation.
The discussion then shifted towards the monetary factors associated with organ donation and transplantation. The panel also discussed the role of media, films on organ donation and organ trafficking. On the role of media, the panel presented two views that films dealing with the subject of organ donation may have a positive as well as negative effect on the myths surrounding organ donation. The current institutional framework for organ donation in India at the center and regional levels was also discussed.
Dr. Muneet then explained the allocation criteria for organ donation and detailed the process of organ sharing among hospitals. The panel also discussed about the concept of green corridor and the different stakeholders involved in setting up a green corridor. The discussion concluded with the panel detailing the concept of donor pledging and how one can sign up to be an organ donor.
At the end, Ms. Nisha on behalf of Khwaab Zindagi Ke gave the vote of thanks. She thanked the panel for their eye-opening insights about organ donation and thanked them for their phenomenal work & contribution in the field of organ donation. She also urged and encouraged everyone to learn about organ donation and take pledge to be an organ donor.
The session was live on Facebook and close to 80 participants attended the session.
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