On 22^nd May 2021, MOHAN Foundation conducted the Module 2 of Organ Donation Ambassadors course for its 6^th batch of trainees. A total of 18 participants comprising college students, independent professionals and MOHAN Foundation staff attended the two and a half hour e-interactive session.  Dr. Hemal Kanvinde, moderator of the training programme, welcomed the audience and the participants introduced themselves in brief.

Segment 1: Ask the Experts - This segment of the training was a one-hour interaction with experts related to the various aspects of organ donation and transplantation. The moderator was Dr. Hemal Kanvinde, Chennai.

The experts present for the discussion were:

o   Dr. Ramdip Ray, Liver Transplant Surgeon from Apollo Hospital, Kolkata

o   Dr. Balaji Kirushnan, Nephrologist from Kauvery Hospital, Chennai

o   Dr. Muneet Kaur Sahi, Senior Transplant Coordinator, Delhi-NCR

o   Ms. Kavitha Aneesh, Senior Transplant Coordinator, Chennai and Trivandrum  

o   Ms. Jaya Jairam, Kidney recipient and Centre Head at MOHAN Foundation, Mumbai

Questions that were asked to the experts from the discussion were:

o   Could an already transplanted kidney recipient be a kidney donor in future?

o   Can the families of transplant recipients and organ donors interact with each other?

o   How does one approach a family to discuss organ donation?

o   Tips on counselling to understand the emotional state of a living donor

o   Will a kidney failure patient on the waiting list, be eligible for organ donation, if he succumbs to COVID-19?

o   How would the organ donation or transplantation counselling take place if the recipient/donor is a person with hearing impairment?

The experts shared their thoughts and quoted from their experiences while answering the questions posed to them.

Segment 2 : Gratitude and Communication Workshop -  This segment of the training was led by Dr. Muneet Kaur Sahi. While grieving the loss of a loved one, donor families make the decision to donate organs to save another person’s life, which is no ordinary feat and sometimes a letter from the recipient could bring relief to them. The participants were asked to place themselves in the shoes of an organ transplant recipient and write a letter thanking the donor family for the gift of life they were given. Every participant read out their letter and suggestions were provided to effectively communicate the feelings and emotions of a recipient in a way that would bring comfort to the families of the donors.

Segment 3 : Modes of Communication - This segment was guided by Dr. Hemal Kanvinde. The objective of Organ Donation Ambassadors is to spread awareness on organ donation through campaigning in public spaces to engage the attention of the public as well as impart knowledge.

While the pandemic does not allow for conventional campaigning, technology has made available the option of virtually connecting with the world.  Awareness talks, information desks, rallies, marathons, online competitions, blogs, and stories written by the ambassadors and others could be used creatively to spread awareness about organ donation to the public. She also gave examples of fundraising events that could be organised by the Ambassadors.

Segment 4 : Tips on preparing a PowerPoint presentation and how to present – The final segment of the training by Dr. Muneet was on how to make an appropriate presentation and effectively deliver the message of organ donation.  The focus should be on keeping it precise, with content that would project the key points of the subject. The 10-20-30 rule of PowerPoint presentations to convey content, a proven, effective technique used by global leaders, was given as a strategy to the participants. She also mentioned adding images in a slide conveys powerful messages when words fail to do so in certain instances.

The training came to a close with the participants sharing their feedback, how they would contribute in the future with their chosen mode of public awareness and selected target group with the guidance of Dr. Hemal and Dr. Muneet.