The first consultative meeting of the Coimbatore cadaver program was organized by MOHAN Foundation at Coimbatore Cosmopolitan Club on 21st April 2012. The meeting was organised to discuss the various issues faced by the Coimbatore cadaver program, and make an action plan to make donations happen in Coimbatore more regularly. The recent three deceased organ donations in the past 6 weeks could act as a catalyst for this programme to take off. These donations resulted in 21 solid organs and tissues.  The kidneys and corneas stayed in Coimbatore and the livers and heart valves came to Chennai.  At the meeting MOHAN Foundation offered its counselling and coordination services to all hospitals to promote and help the  programme.

The meeting was arranged by Coimbatore MOHAN foundation honorary director Mr. Pratap Gokuldas.  Representatives from various hospitals attended the program. From Chennai three members of  MOHAN Foundation attended the meeting. This included the managing trustee  Dr.S.Shroff, trustee – Mrs. Malathy Venkatesan and advisory member to the Foundation board – Mr. Venkatesen.

The meeting started at 7.00 PM,  Mr. Pratap Gokuldas  gave the welcome address introducing the delegates and spoke about the objectives and mission of the Coimbatore cadaver program consultative meeting.

Dr. Sunil Shroff introduced MOHAN foundation and its activities in promoting the deceased organ donation program in India through its wide network of branches across India. He spoke about the role played by MOHAN foundation in increasing the deceased organ donation program in Tamilnadu and Andhra Pradesh. He also highlighted the various services provided by MOHAN foundation like educating the public and medical fraternity throughout India for the past 15 years and placing its trained transplant coordinators around India to felicitate the deceased organ donation program. He spoke about the importance of increasing the number of cadaver organ donation happening in Coimbatore and stressed the sad truth of many organ failure patients dying because of lack of organs for transplant. He said by increasing the instances of deceased organ donation program we will be able to meet the growing demand for organs to save innumerable lives. He also spoke about the last three deceased organ donations facilitated my MOHAN Foundation in Coimbatore and the issues faced by the program in effective implementation of certifying brain dead in hospitals, the logistics involved. He highlighted the grant of ad hoc permission by the DMS office to a non licensed hospital for retrieval of organ within two hours by the networking of MOHAN foundation.  He spoke about the active plan to increase organ donation in Coimbatore and stressed that active participation between the public, private bodies in increasing the number of cadaveric donation in Coimbatore.

Dr.Shroff said that the state convener of the programme Dr.Amalorpavanathan sent his best wishes and hoped to join in the next meeting. He also said that the state convener had conveyed that all help would be rendered to the hospitals in Coimbatore to promote this programme.

The floor was opened for everybody to discuss the issues and problems that is promoting the program in their hospital and identification of achievable goal and solutions.

Dr. Kumaran, Dean, Kovai Medical Centre and Hospital raised the issue of their hospital still having not  received the approved of panel of doctors for their hospital from DMS for certifying brain death. He also said that previously when he was the DEAN CMCH, two of his Neuro surgeons from Govt Hospital refused to declare brain death just because they were not comfortable with doing so.

Various doubts regarding the waiting list registry for live related donation like If all live donation patients come under the registry, should the patient under go transplant surgery in the same hospital where he undergoes dialysis etc. were raised and these were all clarified. Dr. Shroff showed the online waiting list and how it functions.

Dr. Chandra sekar, Cardio vascular surgeon, GKNM hospitals enquired about the waiting list registry for heart and was told that heart is the most wasted organ in Tamilnadu as there are no takers for heart. Dr. Chandra sekar agreed and also said that cardiac surgeons at present seem to be less interested in transplant surgery. Dr. Chandra sekar said within a year they will set up a team in their hospital and actively participate in the program.

For creating awareness the dean, GKNM hospitals, Dr. Ram Kumar Ragupathy spoke about Hollywood film regarding organ donation and Mr. Arun Gokuldas, Blood Donors association, too discussed a similar movie in Malayalam that made a huge impact on the public in knowing about organ donation and brain dead. Mr. Pratap Gokuldas talked about the 15 minutes movie from MOHAN Foundation produced by students that was used by him effectively in Trichy for Rotary meeting.

Dr. Viswaroop from Vedanayagam hospital stressed the involvement of all the members and effective networking between transplants hospitals in making sure that no organ especially hearts getting wasted. Mr. Arun Gokuldas wanted to know it there is priority for all the organs or only for some organs.  Dr. Venu, Chief, Nephrology, PSG hospital discussed about the stagnation of the cadaver program in their hospital and informed that a few cases of brain death  were identified but not certified due to some medical issues, but he was hopeful that soon they would be able to do a successful deceased donation . Dr. Shroff said MOHAN Foundation through its offices throughout India are committed in helping Hospitals in all the issues related to certification, license, logistics and resource development in taking the program forward and urged all stakeholders to look into the various issues.  He handed them a resource manual that contained all the legal forms, procedures, Tamil Nadu GO’s, flow chart and names of hospitals in Tamil Nadu that had license  for transplantation.

Doctors who attended included Dr. G Venu from PSG hospitals, Dr. M. Venkatesan from lotus eye care hospital, Dr. P Ramachandran & Dr.P. Chandra Sekar from GKNM  hospitals, Dr. S.B Viswaroop from Vedanayagam hospital, Dr. Arijit Datta from G Kuppusamy Naidu Memorial  Hospital, Dr. Rao from Rao hospital, Dr. Mohammed from Lotus eye care hospital, Dr. Kumaran from Kovai Medical Centre and Hospital, Dr. Rajkumar Ragupathy from G Kuppusamy Naidu Memorial  Hospital.

It was lastly decided that similar meetings be held at regular intervals to discuss the progress and issues of the program. Mr. Pratap Gokuldas, local host for the consultative meeting lastly thanked all the members for their active participation and hoped for their future commitment for the program.