Exorbitant fares sought by chartered aircraft operators killed a heart that could have given a new lease of life to one last Thursday.
When a 30-year-old woman was declared brain-dead in Bhuj, her family was willing to donate her organs. There was a patient in Mumbai who was in need of a heart, too.
However, airline operators sought Rs 13-14 lakh for transporting the cadaver organs from Bhuj to Mumbai. Since the family could not bear the cost, the heart went dead as cadaver organs are of no use four hours after a person's death.
In fact, the high air fare demanded by the air operators killed seven other organs as well as every cadaver can donate two kidneys, two eyes, lungs, heart, liver and skin.
Dr Sachin Thacker, Bhuj-based physician and a close relative of the brain-dead woman, said that her family wanted to donate her organs for a noble cause.
Taking cognisance of the incident, the Zonal Transplant Coordination Committee (ZTCC) in Mumbai has decided to call a meeting of all chartered flight operators and transplant coordinators of hospitals.
Doctors of a Chennai-based hospital have already approached the Union health ministry, urging it to waive off air-ambulance taxes, so that emergency medical services become affordable.
20/01/16 Santhosh Andhale/Somita Pal/DNA
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When a 30-year-old woman was declared brain-dead in Bhuj, her family was willing to donate her organs. There was a patient in Mumbai who was in need of a heart, too.
However, airline operators sought Rs 13-14 lakh for transporting the cadaver organs from Bhuj to Mumbai. Since the family could not bear the cost, the heart went dead as cadaver organs are of no use four hours after a person's death.
In fact, the high air fare demanded by the air operators killed seven other organs as well as every cadaver can donate two kidneys, two eyes, lungs, heart, liver and skin.
Dr Sachin Thacker, Bhuj-based physician and a close relative of the brain-dead woman, said that her family wanted to donate her organs for a noble cause.
Taking cognisance of the incident, the Zonal Transplant Coordination Committee (ZTCC) in Mumbai has decided to call a meeting of all chartered flight operators and transplant coordinators of hospitals.
Doctors of a Chennai-based hospital have already approached the Union health ministry, urging it to waive off air-ambulance taxes, so that emergency medical services become affordable.
20/01/16 Santhosh Andhale/Somita Pal/DNA
