The workshop took place in Gurugram on March 22, 2024, with the support of SBI Foundation. It brought together senior transplant coordinators and NGO representatives to discuss various issues pertinent to their work. With 40 invited delegates and 21 speakers, totalling 61 participants, the workshop, consisting of 4 sessions, was deemed a great success.
The first session focused on Ethical Case Discussions, led by Dr. Sanjay Nagral, Senior Consultant & Director, Dept of Surgical Gastroenterology, Jaslok Hospital & Research Centre, Mumbai. Dr. Nagral emphasized the distinction between law and ethics, highlighting the trust placed in the idea of deceased organ donation for public good and allocation systems. He also pointed out the challenges to this trust, particularly concerning the dominance of major transplant centers in cities and the private sector. Dr. Nagral utilized four case studies to illustrate different ethical issues that can arise in organ donation and transplantation, sparking lively discussions for each case.
The subsequent session addressed Pediatric Transplantation – Challenges and the Way Forward. Dr. Sonal Asthana of Aster Hospital Bengaluru provided an overview of the topic, stating that 10% of liver transplants are performed on children, with a 75% survival rate at 20 years. He also mentioned the emerging trend of using 3D printing of donor livers to develop surgical plans. Dr. Vikram Kumar of Max Hospital Delhi discussed how to effectively counsel parents of pediatric transplant recipients, emphasizing the importance of building rapport, communicating in the local language, and ensuring the parents' understanding and comfort with the treatment process.
Ms. Shweta, Transplant Coordinator of Aster CMI Bengaluru, highlighted the importance of improving the health of malnourished children with liver failure before transplantation, noting challenges in motivating families, particularly for infants under one year old.
The third session focused on Living Donation (other than near relatives). Dr. Anil Agarwal, Director, Professor, & Head, Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery & Liver Transplant, GB Pant Hospital, New Delhi, discussed the role of the competent authority, the Authorisation Committee, in ensuring compliance with laws and regulations. A panel discussion, featuring Mr. Sanjay Jain, Senior Advocate & Former Additional Solicitor General of India, Dr. Amit Joshi, Deputy Medical Superintendent, Bombay Hospital, Indore, and Mrs. Latha Kumaraswamy, CEO Tanker Foundation, delved into various aspects of living donation, including spousal consent, defining altruism, and identifying fake or "well-trained" donors.
The final session focused on Non-Transplant Organ Retrieval Centers (NTORC) for expanding the donor pool. Ms. Lalitha Raghuram, Country Director, MOHAN Foundation, presented a status report, highlighting the progress in Karnataka and across India. Dr. Deepali Tewari, Additional Chief Medical Superintendent & Senior Ophthalmologist, Western Railways, Vadodara, shared her experience in coordinating donations from NTORCs in her city. Dr. Noble Gracious, Executive Director, Kerala State Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization & Associate Professor, Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, discussed strategies to motivate hospitals to become NTORCs. Ms. Lijamol, Executive Committee (EC) Member South, NATCO, emphasized the importance of careful planning for integrating multiple hospitals as NTORCs. Dr. Georgi Abraham of MGM Hospital Chennai discussed the potential of registering all district and taluk hospitals as NTORCs, while Dr. Avnish Seth, Head, Manipal Organ Sharing & Transplant (MOST), Delhi, highlighted the pivotal role of committed doctors in driving the declaration of brain death and subsequent donation procedures, even within a chain of hospitals.
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