HMC Seeks to Increase Organ Donors in Qatar to More than 500,000 in 2022

HMC Qatar

Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) seeks to increase organ donors in the State of Qatar to more than 500,000 this year, compared to 470,000 organ donors currently registered.

HMC asked members of the public to consider giving the gift of life and registering as organ donors as part of its annual organ donation campaign. The campaign was launched earlier this year and for Ramadan has been reactivated at 11 shopping malls across the country.

As part of the annual Ramadan campaign, information booths staffed by Qatar Organ Donation Center (Hiba) representatives are providing members of the public with information about becoming a registered organ donor, including the process involved and the benefits.

Dr. Riadh Fadhil, Director of the Qatar Organ Donation Center at HMC, said the main objective of the annual event is to increase awareness within the community about organ donation and to help correct misconceptions.

"Every day a multicultural team of between 50 to 70 trained HMC public educators move every after Iftar to the 14 locations to meet the public and educate them on how to protect their health, inform them about the great impact of organ donation on the health of the community. Our educators provide them the opportunity to register as an organ donor after life and provide them of a donor card if they wish," Dr. Fadhil said.

"In Qatar, we have kidney, liver, stem cell, lung and cornea transplantation programs and we hope to be launching a heart transplant program soon. Transplant surgeries are performed by a team of highly skilled professionals. We have state-of-the-art facilities and provide safe and compassionate care. The outcomes of our transplant surgeries are comparable to the highest international standards," he added.

An organ transplant can be a life-saving procedure and can significantly improve the quality of life for someone with chronic organ failure. These life-saving organs come from deceased donors who have pledged during their lifetime to give their organs to someone in need. A deceased organ donor can save up to eight lives.

"It is also possible to donate a kidney or part of the liver to a relative while you are alive. Under the Doha Donation Accord, we make sure we look after donors and their families. For living donors, we provide health insurance for life, as well as covering any loss of income due to working days missed during the operation and recovery. We also honor our donors for giving this precious gift during an annual ceremony organized especially for this purpose. Each donor receives the Medal of Altruism in recognition of their selfless gift," said Dr. Fadhil.

"Last year (2021) was our best year in organ donation, more than 140 living donors volunteered to donate to their family members and be evaluated by the Ethical Committee. Of those, 31 living donors plus organs from 13 deceased donors gave life to 56 patients including 48 kidneys, seven livers and one lung," he noted.

The Qatar Organ Donation Center (Hiba) have run successful awareness campaigns over the last few months with community groups and major organizations, all designed to demystify organ donation and encourage people to register. Dr. Fadhil said that Qatar aims to become self-sufficient in organ donation and this can be achieved with continued widespread community support, underscoring the significance of the annual Ramadan campaign in helping to raise awareness about the importance of organ donation.

(QNA)