Brain dead man saves four lives; heart, liver and kidneys donated [details]

A 32-year-old man, declared brain dead, saved four lives after his family donated his heart, liver and both kidneys on Wednesday.

The man, hailing from Madhya Pradesh, met with an accident in Mahipalpur, Delhi on February 25 and was brought in an extremely critical condition to Fortis Hospital, Vasant Kunj.

The patient was declared brain dead on Tuesday.

Post-counseling, the patient's family decided to donate his heart, liver and kidney to save the lives of patients needing transplants.

The heart was donated to AIIMS, the liver to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, one kidney to Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, and the second kidney was transplanted on a patient at Fortis, Vasant Kunj.

A green corridor was also created from Fortis Hospital, Vasant Kunj to transport the heart, covering a distance of 10 kms in just 11 minutes.

"I salute the deceased donor and his family for having realised the value of organ donation and giving life to ailing patients. This should encourage more people to come forward and get themselves registered for organ donation to save more lives," said Gauri Shankar Sharma, Director and Head, Critical Care Medicine, Fortis Hospital, Vasant Kunj, in a statement.

As per the data available with NOTTO, in 2022, 11 cadaver donations were done with successful retrieval of 30 organs in Delhi. Every year, hundreds of people die in India, waiting for an organ transplant.

Due to lack of awareness and misconceptions, there is a shortage of organ donors, and with each passing year, the gap between the number of organs donated and the people waiting for transplant, is growing wider.

Timely cadaveric organ donation can save many lives and more people would come forth and pledge their organs if they receive more information and are educated on the benefits of organ donation.

(With inputs from IANS)