Centre has adopted ‘One Nation, One Policy’ for organ, tissue transplant: Health official

The Indian government has adopted the policy of ‘One Nation, One Policy’ for organ donation and transplantation and has also started consultation process with the states in the matter, a senior health ministry official said on Friday. “Organ donation needs to become a way of life for us so that we can give a new lease of life to those suffering from organ failure,” said L S Changsan, Additional Secretary in the Union Health Ministry of Health. Changsan made the remarks as she inaugurated a deliberation on ‘Reforms required for augmentation of organ and tissue donation and transplantation in terms of Technology, Processes and Legislation in India’ here today.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has highlighted the importance of organ donation in his Mann Ki Baat programme and emphasised on the fact that one person donating organs after death can give a new lease of life to up to eight patients suffering from various organ failures,” she said.

She also stressed on the need to promote organ donation from the deceased persons to meet the huge need for organ donation in the country

Changsan said that the ministry’s focus is to improve availability of infrastructure and trained manpower for organ transplantation, especially in government institutions.

The Centre has already initiated Organ Donation Public Awareness Campaign under the title ‘Angdaan Jan Jagrukta Abhiyaan,’ actively underway in several states and institutions.

Dr Atul Goel, Director General Health Service (DGHS), said that the NOTTO has taken the lead in the field of organ and tissue transplant in India and the deliberation underway in the national capital provides an opportunity for introspection on putting systems in place.

“In our nation we have had a tradition of giving i.e. altruism. While we have live donations, we need to encourage deceased donations as much as possible both in government and private hospitals,” he said.

The two-day Chintan Shivir will cover ten important themes concerning organ donation and transplantation and various sub-themes.

The objectives for the Chintan Shivir are to discuss the reforms required for augmenting organ and tissue donation and transplantation besides exploring and discuss advancements in technology that can improve organ donation and allocation processes.

The aim is to propose recommendations for legislative reforms in order to strengthen the existing legal framework related to organ donation and transplantation.

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