HYDERABAD: In a bid to promote organ donations in the State, Health Minister T Harish Rao on Sunday announced that the government will explore the possibility of enrolling the children of deceased organ donors in residential schools and providing their family members with a 2 BHK flat. Speaking at an event organised to felicitate the families of deceased organ donors at the Gandhi Medical College here, the minister said that helicopters will be pressed into service if necessary to ensure on-time transplantation of organs.
“One organ donor can save the lives of eight persons,” the minister said. “Due to changing lifestyles, food habits and increased alcohol consumption and smoking, the number of people who are suffering from chronic diseases at a young age is on the rise. Whereas, the lack of awareness and neglecting symptoms are leading to late diagnosis of these diseases and thus adversely affecting the organs,” the minister said.
“No matter how advanced the medical field is, kidney, liver, heart and other organs cannot be made artificially. In brain death cases, family members should fulfil social responsibility and save the lives of others by donating the organs of the brain-dead,” Harish Rao said.
Speaking to media persons, the minister revealed that the State is performing better in terms of donations and transplantations compared to other states. In total, 36 government hospitals are registered under Jeevandan, while organ transplantations are being done in Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS), Osmania General Hospital and Gandhi Hospital.
“The Jeevandan programme was launched in 2013 and so far, the organs of, 1,142 brain-dead patients have been donated. A total of 4,316 organs were collected and transplanted to those in need,” said the minister. While the country’s overall donation rate is 0.6 per cent per 10 lakh people, it is 5.08 per cent in Telangana.
Telangana tops the list with 179 organ donations so far this year, followed by Gujarat (126), Karnataka (114) and Maharashtra (80). “However, there are more than 3,000 people in the State who have registered themselves under Jeevandan and are waiting for donors,” he said.