From Death to Life - Organ Donor Families Felicitated for Giving Life

The Governor of Tamil Nadu felicitated 26 organ donor families in an event organized by MOHAN Foundation at Raj Bhavan to honor donor families and to promote organ donation awareness in India.

Honoring organ donor families during organ donor awareness week takes pride of place among all other initiatives undertaken to promote organ donation awareness. It takes courage to move past the time of grief as soon as a dear one is declared ‘brain dead’ and decide to donate the organs so other lives can live on.

The Governor of Tamil Nadu, South India, His Excellency Dr. Rosaiah graced an occasion organized by MOHAN Foundation (Multi Organ Harvesting Aid Network) to give due recognition to 26 organ donor families in Tamil Nadu. At the special function held at Raj Bhavan on Thursday 9^th August, the Governor felicitated the families of deceased organ donors and commended them for their brave decision that gave a new lease of life to many others.

Organ Donor Awareness Week 2012 - 'Gifting Life'
Organ donation awareness week is a fitting time for people to learn about organ donation, discuss it with family and friends, pledge their organs, become a ‘card carrying donor’ and gift life.

In his welcome address, Dr. Sunil Shroff, Managing Trustee, MOHAN Foundation, said organ transplantation was one of the greatest achievements of modern science and that wouldn’t be possible without organ donations, especially in the event of brain death where multiple organs could be donated. “Death can bring life and sorrow can turn to joy when the courage and conviction of donor families prompt them to say ‘Yes” to organ donation,” Dr. Shroff said. “MOHAN Foundation honors such brave families each year for their unique experience and we should all draw inspiration from these brave people,” he added.

Congratulating MOHAN Foundation for organizing the Organ Donor Week and for promoting organ donation, the Governor of Tamil Nadu said, “I am pleased to honor organ donor families for their act of benevolence. Tamil Nadu stands high in organ donation rate and is 15 times the national average. The initiatives taken by the Govt. of Tamil Nadu under its Cadaver Transplant Program and the joint efforts put on by voluntary organizations like MOHAN Foundation to form a network to facilitate organ transplantation and organ donation deserves appreciation.”

The governor said he was pleased to learn that a MoU has been signed between MMC and MOHAN Foundation to place transplant coordinators in Rajiv Gandhi Govt. General Hospital and appreciated the Tamil Nadu Police for “creating a green channel system to facilitate quick transportation of the organs without any delay.”

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The governor released the 35^th edition of the Indian Transplant Newsletter and felicitated the people who took deceased organ donation forward—members of the medical community and Cognizant Foundation for providing MOHAN Foundation with e-learning classroom facilities to train grief/transplant coordinators. Dr. J. Amalorpavanathan, Convenor, Cadaver Transplant Program introduced the doctors who were felicitated by the governor, Dr. N. Muthurajan, Deputy DME, Dr. K. Deiveegan, Dr. R. Venkatachalam, Dr. B. Santhakumar (General Hospital) Dr. M. Dhanraj, Dr. Anita Cherian (Apollo Hospitals) Dr. K. Sridhar, Dr. K. Ilankumaran (Global Hospitals).

Members of the donor families who shared their heart wrenching experiences with the media stood tall, despite the wave of sadness and grief that the occasion brought to memory, alongside the honor. Mrs. Mahalakshmi donated the organs of her husband Mr. Srinath who was declared ‘brain dead’ following brain hemorrhage, when grief counselors approached her with the suggestion. The brave mother of 3 children says she consoles herself with the thought that her husband will live through other people’s lives when they receive his organs.

Mrs. Jayalakshmi of Thirukovilur, Villupuram district lost her 43-year-old husband, Mr. S.V. Srinivasan in a road accident last month. She says it was a collective decision by her close family members to donate her deceased husband’s organs so other people in dire need of organs can benefit from his parting gift.

Mrs. Kamala and Mr. Karvannan lost their 12-year-old daughter Gokulapriya in a road accident a couple of months ago. A speeding motorbike knocked her down as she was returning from school in her native Namakkal district. She was first rushed to a hospital in Salem with severe head injury and later referred to a hospital in Chennai where she was declared ‘brain dead.’ Their family doctor advised them on organ donation and the couple readily cooperated with doctors to facilitate donation of their child’s organs. “My daughter is gone. What will I do with her organs? That’s why I gave it away to others who can use it and live,” said the mother tearfully.

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Organ donations offer a fresh lease of life to thousands of patients languishing for want of an organ or tissue transplant. A greater awareness in society on the dire need of organ donation needs to pick up fast so more organs will be available for transplant to save precious lives.

Get a donor card today. Let your dear ones know of your decision to donate your organs in the event of a mishap. Spread the word about the importance of organ donation. Saving lives is that easy!

To download an Organ Donor card visit
http://www.mohanfoundation.org/downloads.asp

Source-Medindia