On February 23, 2024, the MOHAN Foundation conducted an awareness session on organ donation for the batch of bus drivers of DTC undergoing refresher training at DTC Training School, Nand Nagri Depot, Delhi. In a year, this was the twelfth session. The speakers for the session were Ms. Sanya Santosh and Ms. Simran Anand, Programme Officers, MOHAN Foundation, NCR.

 

Ms. Simran began the session by introducing MF to the participants and asking them about their understanding of organ donation. Ms. Sanya then explained the basic concept of organ donation to the participants. The term brain death was explained with the help of a short informative film. Ms. Simran explained to the participants the various steps involved in a brain death declaration and clarified the concept of legal death. The following topics were explained in detail:

 

• What is organ donation, and what's its need in society?

• Who can be an organ donor?

• Explanation about live and deceased donors

• Organs that can be donated during life and after death

• Brain death

• Eye donation and steps required to preserve the cornea 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

• Differences between coma and brain death

 

The majority of the drivers in this group were from the villages in Haryana, and they shared the pervasive misunderstandings about organ donation that exist there. A few participants also disclosed their fear of being mutilated following the retrieval. To help the participants dispel their misconceptions about organ donation, Ms. Simran went over all the pertinent facts and myths in detail.

 

Throughout the session, the participants frequently posed questions. To name a few.

 

• What is the process of pledging for organ donation?

• Can brain also be donated?

• How is coma different from brain death?

• Can the organs be used after a post-mortem?

• How much time does each organ have after the retrieval process?

• Is there any government organisation working for the same cause?

 

Close to 70 participants attended the session.