On June 21, 2024, MOHAN Foundation conducted an awareness session on organ donation at the Conference Hall, Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS), Porompat, for the nursing students of Irengbam Thamcha Devi Nursing & Health Care Research Institute (ITDNHCRI), Imphal. Ms. Laishram Monica Devi, the Programme Officer, and Ms. Thoidingjam Udayini Khuman, the Transplant Coordinator of the MOHAN Foundation, conducted the programme.
This session was part of the awareness campaign that began on January 4, 2024, at JNIMS. The first-year, second-year, and fourth-year nursing students were the participants of the session.
Ms. Monica began the session by assessing the students' existing knowledge on organ donation and transplantation. She provided an overview of the MOHAN Foundation's objectives and vision, and she elaborated on several key points. These included the different types of organ donation, the laws governing transplantation, and the distinction between circulatory death and brain death.
She shared stories of deceased donors and transplant programs operating in Manipur, as well as common facts and myths about organ donation. Ms. Monica also provided information about corneal transplants and eye banks, highlighted the importance of family consent in the organ donation process, outlined the steps to pledge or register for organ donation, and described the MOHAN Foundation's professional courses.
Subsequently, the team engaged in a brief discussion with the participants, addressing several queries. To name a few:
• The process of skin donation follows organ donation.
• If a state has more than two or three transplant centres, it follows an allocation protocol.
• The cost of a liver transplant is higher as compared to a kidney transplant.
Later, the team distributed FAQs on organ donation to the participants. The team also completed on-the-spot registrations on the NOTTO website for pledged organ donations.
Close to 78 participants attended the session, and 14 of them pledged to donate organs.