As many as 19 hospitals including 12 private hospitals have been granted permission to conduct organ transplantation after the enforcement of President's Organs Transplantation Ordinance.
This was revealed during press conference at Sindh Institute of Urology Transplantation (SIUT) on Thursday addressed by Director SIUT Dr Adib Rizvi, President Pakistan Association of Urological Surgeons Sajjad Hussain, President Transplantation Society of Pakistan (TSP) Farakh Khan, President Pakistan Society of Nephrologists Muhammad Tufail and General Secretary TSP Saeed Akhter.
It may be pointed out that an evaluation committee led by Major General A.Q Usmani (Retd), who was also present in the press conference, was set up after the ordinance gave permission to carry out the transplantation operation in the hospitals.
"Thirty hospitals in Sindh and Punjab provinces applied to carry out organ transplantation but till now temporary recognition has been given to 19 hospitals," said Major General A.Q Usmani (Retd), chairman of the committee.
The chairman said that many of the hospitals were allegedly involved in exploitation of the poor.
"I am taken aback to know that such hospitals were also allowed to carry out transplantation which involve in exploitation of the poor kidney donors," Dr Adib said. However, A.Q Usmani defended his decision by saying that 'law can not be applied by seeing the past.'
Dr Adib said we had to protect the ordinance saying that sustained struggle of doctors, civil society and media was not over. He feared that certain lawmakers might block legislation against commercialisation of human organs or the ordinance might be made weaker.
Sajjad Hussain said there was need to create awareness for culture of donation. He said history of organs donation started in the country way back in the 1980s. Later on, organ tourism started based on exploitation of the poor, he added.
Commenting on 'donor card' as started by SIUT, he claimed hundreds of people have shown their willingness to donate their organs. Farakh Khan said it was good to see that the government would set up funds, as treatment after transplantation was very expensive.
Dr Bakhsh Ali of SIUT said around 800 people have applied for 'donor card' to donate their organs after death. Speaking on the occasion, Federal Health Secretary Khushnood Lashari pledged to assist efforts of medical community in transforming the human organ transplantation ordinance into a law.
He lauded efforts of doctors and civil society for their struggle for the implementation of ordinance to end exploitation of the poor. Professor Adib Rizvi, Director SIUT urged the concerned authorities to make the ordinance a permanent law for the benefit of common people. He said organ trafficking had to be stopped besides highlighting importance of help for patients with end organ failure.
He said the first step towards the cadaver donor programme was the launching of the Donor Card today. Luc Noel of World Health Organisation, Switzerland termed commercialisation of transplantation and organ trafficking as unethical and illegal. He underlined the need of deceased organ donation to end this inhuman trade.
Professor Mehmet Haberal, founder president MESOT, Turkey said since 1975 they had transplanted 1904 kidneys and in all 16310 organs from cadaver sources. He said Turkey has the cadaver law and the infrastructure for retrieving organs.
Professor Francis Delmonico of International Transplantation Society, USA referring perceived success of ethical transplantation there said it started over four decades ago with living donation on humane grounds and no compensation and later included 'non-heart beating donations'. He said this has helped in increasing the availability of donor organs.
Professor Faisal Shaheen, president Saudi Committee of Organ Transplantation said cadaver organ donation was being practised in Saudi Arabia for many years. They had transplanted 1672 cadaver kidneys between 1985 and 2006. At the end of the conference, the launching ceremony of the Donor Card took place.