Chandigarh : November 3 : Even the pandemic of COVID 19 failed to
dampen the ‘spirit of giving’ of two brave-heart donor families from
neighbouring states as their magnanimous gesture of Organ Donation of
their demised dear ones gave new lease of life to four and restored the
sight of four more with the transplantation of kidneys and corneas in the
last fortnight here in PGIMER.
Expressing gratitude to the donor families, Prof. Jagat Ram, Director
PGIMER, stated, “It is an extremely hard decision for anyone to make
when one is put in that situation, but donor families like them definitely
instil a sense of confidence not only in the in-waiting recipients fighting a
losing battle but also for the Cadaver Organ Donation Programme. It’s a
‘gift of life’ for the recipients and incredible achievement for the entire
team of PGIMER involved in the process.”
Prof. Ashish Sharma, Head, Deptt. of Renal Transplant Surgery,
deliberating about the challenges involved in transplant due to COVID 19
pandemic, stated, “Special precautions are taken to proceed with the
transplant. The deceased donor as well as both recipients are tested and
confirmed to be negative for Covid 19. In the post-op period, the staff is
rostered in such a way so that only a limited healthcare workers are in
contact with both the recipients and no visitors are allowed. All the
recipients who underwent transplant have been on dialysis for the last few
years and remaining on dialysis also carries risk of contracting
coronavirus as they need to travel to dialysis centres at least twice a
week.”
Prof. Vipin Koushal, Additional , Medical Superintendent, PGIMER
& Nodal Officer, ROTTO (North) recounted about the latest cadaver
organ donation as he said, “It is the ‘Yes’ by the donor family on which
the cadaver organ donation programme hinges. It shows the
extraordinary difference a ‘yes’ has made to the eight recipients and their
families, who were extremely lucky to have second chance with the
transplantation of kidneys and corneas. I earnestly hope that the donor
families’ self less gesture inspires more people to say ‘yes’ to Organ
Donation and help saving those dying waiting for a transplant.”
The untimely and tragic death of 45 year old Sikh Granthi Gurinder
Singh, resident of village Phalsanda Rangran, District Kurukshetra,
Haryana years is beyond comprehension and extremely difficult to
reconcile with. It was the fateful night of 28th October as he was returning
from late night duty with his son on a motor bike when accidentally their
bike rammed into a car coming from opposite side while turning to a
roadside hotel.
Gurinder Singh was hit badly and had a severe head injury. He was
immediately rushed to a private hospital in Kurukshetra form where he
was referred to PGIMER Chandigarh in a critical condition. But his
condition kept deteriorating day by day despite the best of efforts and
became irreversible on 30th October and he was declared brain dead
following the protocols of THOA 1994.
After the grief counselling by transplant coordinators, his wife Swarn
Kaur expressed her desire to donate multiple organs for therapeutic
purpose to save life of terminally ill patients which led to giving life to two
and restoring the sight of two more after the transplantation of harvested
kidneys and corneas of donor Gurinder Singh.
Despite confronted with this heart wrenching tragedy of the sudden
demise of her husband, resolute Swarn Kaur reiterated the true meaning
of religion as she said, “it is written in our Gurbani “Seva or selfless
service is at the core of being a Sikh: to give without seeking reward or
recognition. My husband lived his entire life in ‘Seva’ only, so organ
donation aptly completed his mortal journey as there cannot be a bigger
Seva than giving someone another lease of life.”
PGIMER witnessed equally gracious gesture by another family from a
village in Derabassi, Punjab whose tragedy was also beyond words as
their 50 year old family member became victim to a road accident,
sustaining severe head injuries on 14th October. The family ran from pllar
to post in the hope of saving their dear one as they rushed the victim to
Civil Hospital, Dera Bassi, then to GMCH, Sector 32 and finally to PGIMER.
However, it was destined otherwise as the victim could not be saved from
his irretrievable condition and was declared brain dead on 21st October.
The family took the brave decision of organ donation after they were
counselled about the noble cause and gave life to two and sight to two
more with the transplantation of retrieved kidneys and corneas of the
donor.
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Posted by Surinder Verma on Tuesday, June 23, 2020
