SOTTO organizes awareness program on organ donation at GMC Handwara
Handwara: In a concerted effort to raise awareness about organ donation, the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (SOTTO) organized a day-long organ donation awareness program on Monday at GMC Handwara.
The awareness program was attended by a large number of health professionals including doctors and numerous medical students, providing them with invaluable insights into the critical significance of organ donation.
One of the leading figures in the medical community, renowned Urologist/Kidney Transplant Surgeon Prof and HoD Urology/Kidney Transplant Unit SKIMS Soura Dr. Saleem Wani, highlighted the acute necessity for organ donations in the Kashmir Valley. He shed light on the staggering demand for organs within the region, emphasizing the dire need for increased participation in organ donation initiatives.
In a compelling appeal, Dr. Wani called upon religious leaders, urging ulemas to incorporate messages promoting organ donation within their congregational prayers. He underscored the powerful potential of a single donor to transform up to eight lives through the generous act of organ donation.
“We have conducted 550 kidney transplant surgeries in SKIMS Soura. But we have to search for donors which is a problem as we need live donors. For this we are creating awareness that if individuals in critical conditions are declared brain stem dead and their families consent to organ donation, the organs retrieved could offer a second chance at life for multiple individuals in need of transplants,” he added.
Dr. Saleem Wani, in his impactful address during the SOTTO organ donation awareness event, underscored the concept of brain stem death. He emphasized that in cases where an individual sustains critical injuries and is reliant on a ventilator for survival, with minimal chances of recovery; their situation can present a unique opportunity to potentially save the lives of multiple individuals.
Dr. Wani emphasized the concept of brain stem death, particularly in cases where individuals suffer critical injuries, necessitating life support through ventilators, with bleak prospects for recovery. He brought attention to the profound opportunity that arises in such circumstances—a single individual, sustained by machines, could serve as a beacon of hope for up to eight other lives through the selfless act of organ donation.
Dr. Saleem Wani delivered a stirring message regarding the religious perspective on organ donation, emphasizing that every major religion, including Islam, permits and even endorses the act of organ donation.
