Organ Donation Day

We all do charity in our lives, which is often forgotten by us and others, as this act is not sustainable and does not last long. However, there is an act of charity that is sustainable, the affects of which lasts very long and will be remembered by all….… THE GIFT OF LIFE……

THE GIFT OF LIFE…….or donating your organs to the needy who otherwise would have lost their lives if organs are not received on time.  There are several thousand patients suffering from end organ damage – be it of the heart, liver, lungs, kidneys etc. and waiting for precious organ replacements.

13^th Aug is celebrated as “Organ Donation Day” in our country, starting from the year 2010.

On this occasion when we enter the 10^th year of inception, I would like to extend my boundless appreciation for those living donors who have donated their organ to their loved ones, out of compassion and love.  These brave donors have subjected themselves to pain and risks associated with organ donation, just to see their loved ones smile and come back to normal life.

Hats off to the families of deceased donors as well.  My biggest regards and gratitude to them for this highest form of kindness, who despite the many myths and beliefs that are prevalent around organ donation, have come forward to gift life to someone who is no way connected or related to them.  In fact they should be appreciated at the national level for this act of unconditional compassion towards a fellow human being.  The deceased donor has left us but his organs are still functioning in someone else’s body and helping him lead a normal life.

As per the Human Organ Transplant Act 2014, the donors are broadly classified into Living Donors and Deceased Donors. Living donors are family members who can donate either one kidney or part of their liver to another family member in need of the organ.  Whereas, Deceased Donor donates his or her organs to patients who are not related to them and are unknown to them. These donors can save up to 8 lives by donating various organs – two kidneys, heart, lungs, liver, intestine and pancreas.

There is a huge gap in Organ demand and supply not only in our country but also across the globe. We need to come forward, educate ourselves about organ donation and spread awareness about the same so that demand and supply gap is minimized and patients on waiting list for transplants are brought back to normal life through organ donation.