Maha govt makes certification of brain death mandatory

Mumbai: With a view to streamline procedures for coordinating organ transplant, the Maharashtra government has made it mandatory to declare `brain death` and certify it accordingly.

In the current situation, availability of organs for transplantation is falling woefully short of the demand, while organ transplantation is considered as the only treatment for end stage disease.

Considering the fact that a large number of brain deaths occur in non-transplant hospitals, an appropriate authority, as per the Transplantation of Human Organs Act, 1994, shall take the initiative to register those hospitals that fulfil the conditions as non-transplant organ retrieval centres, said the recent government resolution (GR) issued by the health department.

Whenever the medical condition (clinical and medical criteria prescribed) of a patient reaches a brain death stage, the certification will be done by the authorised medical personnel and immediately thereafter the details of it would be conveyed to zonal transplantation co-ordination committee for distribution of the organs, the GR said.

The order shall come in force in hospitals which are registered under Human Organ Transplant Act, 1994 and non transplant organ retrieval centres in the state with immediate effect, it mentioned.

Donor management and meticulous coordination is crucial in maintaining excellent outcomes in organ transplantation, the GR said.

The appropriate authority shall register all hospitals in the state that have an operation theatre and intensive care unit as non-transplant organ retrieval centres (NTORCs).

These hospitals are permitted to certify brain death
as per the procedures stipulated in the guidelines issued by the appropriate authority or state government and conduct organ retrieval for therapeutic purposes, but are not permitted to perform actual transplantation of human organs.

NTORCs can take assistance and support from any hospital registered with the appropriate authority as a transplant centre for maintaining the brain dead person in a stable condition until organ retrieval is carried out, the GR said.

Whenever a brain death occurs in an NTORC and the deceased donor`s family consents to the organ donation, the NTORC will contact the zonal transplant coordination committee or organ allocation as per norms. The organs shall be allocated following prioritisation norms for zonal transplant co-ordination committee in the state.

Hospitals which have been registered as transplant centres will maintain transplant surgery records for a minimum ten years. They shall ensure availability of a counselling department/ wing to whom the task of counselling individuals involved in organ transplant in entrusted.

The transplant centre hospital will not reveal identity of the recipient or attract any form of media publicity, the resolution said.

Also, all transplant centre hospitals that wish to benefit from the cadaver transplant programme are required to display the approximate range of cost of transplant surgery by specifying the organ type on the website of the hospital and the one designated for the purpose by the health department, it added.