On August 14, 2021, MOHAN Foundation was invited to conduct an online awareness session on organ donation, titled “Ek din bik jayega mati ke mol” for the members of Simran Seva Sansthan, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The session was initiated by Ms. Simranjeet Kaur, Founder-Simran Seva Sansthan to mark Organ Donation Day that was on August 13, 2021. Ms. Preeti Goswami, Programme Officer, Delhi-NCR was the resource person.  Dr. Muneet Kaur Sahi, Programme Manager, MOHAN Foundation-Delhi NCR was invited as a keynote speaker. Ms. Nita Ganguly, a Climate Leader Humanist was also invited as a guest speaker.

The session was also attended by the school teachers of Smiling Blooming Bird School & Amrita School, Lucknow and housewives of local residential areas of Lucknow, who are passionate for social work and want to become active social change makers.

Simran Seva Sansthan is a Lucknow, UP based non-profit organization. The organization is committed for Social Welfare programs, working for women empowerment and education for underprivileged children. The organization is currently has more than 70 members, dedicated to social welfare. 

At the beginning of the session, Ms. Simranjeet welcomed all the participants and introduced Dr. Muneet and invited her to begin the session. Before starting the session, Dr. Muneet informed the audience about the history and significance of Organ Donation Day. She also informed that MOHAN is not someone’s name but an acronym. She then explained the basic concepts of organ donation and transplantation with the help of a simple PowerPoint presentation.

The following topics were explained in detail: 

• Organ donation and its need
• When and how does organ donation take place
• Organs that can be donated during life and after death
• The transplant waiting list in India
• Brain death
• Difference between brain death and coma
• Contraindications to organ donation
• Transplant Law
• Role of MOHAN Foundation
• Organ donation Myths and Facts
• Eye Donation 

Dr. Muneet said age is not a bar for organ donation and anyone can pledge for organ donation. At the time of organ retrieval, a person’s age does not matter. The person’s organs should be healthy.  A short movie was also shown to the audience to give clarity on “brain death” and to enumerate the difference between coma and brain death. The participants were interactive during the presentation and asked many questions. To name a few:

• Can we donate organs in COVID time?
• What is the difference between organ and body donation?
• What is your personal experience? Why do you think most of the families in India do not give their consent for organ donation?
• If I pledge for organ donation and I die at the age of 80, will my organs be in a condition to donate?
• Whom to contact for organ donation pledging?

Dr. Muneet also explained the whole process of eye donation. She informed the participants that eye donation is a simple procedure that can be even done at home.

At the end, Ms. Simranjeet gave the vote of thanks. She said the session was very fruitful. She shared with the audience that she had signed up for body donation and she was hopeful that after today’s session many participants will come forward and pledge for organ donation. She also expressed her interest in collaborating with MOHAN Foundation to promote organ donation in Lucknow. She said she is interested for conducting the sessions with MOHAN Foundation once in a month.

 Feedback from the audience:

• Thanks for the wonderful session.
• The session was very informative.

Close to 25 participants attended the session.