A poll conducted by "Emirates Today" revealed that 41% of its participants wish to donate their organs after death, but they are not aware of the donation mechanism, while the participants suggested organizing awareness campaigns to spread the culture of donation, and adding the item of donating human organs after death, within the identity cards and driving licenses And health insurance cards.

Doctors emphasized to «Emirates Today» the importance of highlighting the culture of organ donation in the community, noting that there is an actual deficiency in this aspect.

The UAE is a pioneer in organ transplantation in the Gulf region and the Middle East, as it has achieved impressive medical successes in the field of donation and transplantation of multiple organs, including: the heart, liver and lungs, and the expansion of kidney transplantation.

The country also exceeded the global average for donated organs, for each person who died after death.

The smart “Hayat” application has contributed to providing a sustainable solution for a large number of patients, and restoring hope for life, especially for patients with heart failure, pulmonary failure, liver cirrhosis and kidney failure, as it is linked to the national organ donation program, which was launched early in 2019, and it allows everyone to have the capacity In full, he expresses his desire to donate one of his organs, or parts thereof, or his tissues until after his death, and he has the right to withdraw his desire at any time without restriction or condition.

In detail, a poll conducted by «Emirates Today», on its official account on Twitter, and nearly a thousand people from different regions of the country attended, that 41% of the participants wish to donate their organs after death, but they lack the information and mechanism that can be During the donation, while 33% of the participants indicated that they do not wish to donate, and they do not have information about its importance, and 4% confirmed that they registered their names in the "Hayat" application, and 22% have sufficient information, but they do not wish to register with the "Hayat" application.

The suggestions for spreading the culture of organ donation after death included a proposal to register approval for organ donation on the driver’s license, to facilitate access in the event of an accident that results in his death, and to take the necessary without consulting the heirs, and another proposal to add the option of organ donation to the procedures for extracting and renewing health insurance , Which expands the donor base and allows the creation of a unified database through which hospitals can be notified, in the event of a patient’s death, and the work of identification cards for individuals participating in the application of organ donation, in appreciation of their noble position.

Doctors at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City confirmed to "Emirates Today" the importance of highlighting the culture of organ donation in the community, as "there is still a need for more efforts to spread this culture and spread legislation and laws regulating this process," noting that "a list Brain deceased donors are open to register citizens and non-citizens in the UAE, and dependence is currently placed on hospital employees who have been trained, to visit emergency and intensive care units to get close and talk to the families of the deceased in intensive care. ”

The city, in its response to the Emirates Today’s inquiries, clarified that the waiting list for patients in need of a kidney transplant includes more than 200 patients, and that it conducts about 10 thousand examinations annually for patients and donors in the laboratory of diseases of the immune system and tissues, noting that the kidney center in «Khalifa Medical »He performed more than 301 kidney transplants and transplants from 2008 to last year, 39 of them last year. The operations included 43 implants for children and 258 adults. The number of living donors reached 286, while the number of brain dead donors reached 15. The city provides state residents with the service of performing kidney transplant operations, and it has an international medical team at the highest level in kidney transplant operations, where there is a hospital committee that meets weekly to study cases and approve transplant operations.

"The results of kidney transplantation are much better than dialysis, because it has complications and side effects on the heart," said Dr. Muhammad Yahya al-Sayari, a consultant in kidney disease and kidney transplantation in the city, noting that "the kidney transplant process (medically) raises the patient's life rate from 10 To 12 years, and the cost of dialysis annually is 250 thousand dirhams, while the kidney transplant process costs the same amount, but the cost after the operation is carried out reaches 30 thousand dirhams annually, and is specific to immune medications and related tests ».

He added that the process of transplanting and transplanting the kidneys takes place through three stages, including accurate diagnosis and preparation of the patient and the kidney donor, through a series of procedures, examinations and x-rays, which include blood tests, infections, heart and tissue matching to ensure the safety of the patient and the donor, then the operation and follow-up of both after the procedure.

Al-Sayari pointed out that «the person who transplanted the kidney needs medications, to ensure that there is sufficient immunity and the body’s continued acceptance of the transplanted organ, and that the transplant member’s age reaches 15 years, if the donor is alive, and from 10 to 12 years if the donor is deceased. The age of the transplant member also depends on several factors, including the matching process between the patient and the donor, the age of the donor, in addition to the patient's commitment and regularity in monitoring and taking medications. He continued that «kidney donation from the living is often from the donors of relatives, and there are a few deceased donors whose relatives agree to donate organs after a brain death. On the other hand, there are a significant number of patients waiting for kidney transplant, the number exceeds 1500 patients with kidney failure, they did not find a donor from their family members for various reasons, including health reasons, and a family member, such as the husband, refused that his wife donated to one of the family for fear of her health » .

He added that «the problem of the lack of organs available for transplantation comes with the increasing number of patients in need of organs, a problem that most countries suffer from», pointing out that the cost of one kidney transplant operation is equivalent to the cost of dialysis for a whole year, which means saving in the budget allocated to treatment, And the decrease in the cost of following up a patient who performed the transplant to 37,000 dirhams annually, compared to the annual cost of dialysis that will last a lifetime.

Specialized training

Dr. Mohammed Badr Al-Zaman, a consultant and head of the organ transplant department at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, said that the city provides specialized training, for doctors, nurses and hospital staff, on ways to communicate with the families of the deceased patients.

He explained that Abu Dhabi Health Services Company attracted a team from outside the state to train employees to deal with the family of the deceased, in addition to training them to contribute to changing the societal culture of the issue of organ donation after death.

For its part, Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA) confirmed that it attaches great importance to organ and human tissue transplantation, noting that it is coordinating with the Supreme Committee to develop the donation program and organ and human tissue transplantation in the Abu Dhabi Health Department, and with the National Committee for Donation, Organ Transplantation and Tissue at the Ministry of Health and Prevention Community, to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation to save the lives of patients with organ failure.

She pointed to its success, in cooperation with the Emirates Organ Transplant Centers (Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Cleveland Hospital in Abu Dhabi, Mediclinic and the Galila Hospital in Dubai), in enabling the families of 20 post-mortem donors of eight nationalities to exercise their right to donate organs and save lives 74 A person, as it included: a heart transplant, lungs, liver, pancreas, and kidneys, which contributed to the return of these patients to their normal lives.

The Executive Director of Academic Affairs at SEHA, Dr. Ali Al-Obaidli, emphasized that SEHA encourages a culture of organ donation, and worked to build competencies in this specialty, in addition to organizing various community activities and intensive workshops for specialists from doctors and nurses in intensive care, for training in The field of organ donation, referring to the training of a number of specialists and medical staff in Abu Dhabi and the UAE, in cooperation with specialized international and regional bodies, including the Institute for Donation and Organ Transplantation in Spain DTI, with the aim of adopting best practices to achieve pioneering results for the state in the field of donation and organ transplantation, and ensures resource development And human capabilities in this specialty. He stressed that the UAE is one of the leading countries in organ transplantation, as it and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are the only two countries in the region that provide transplants and organ transplants. The UAE has made important achievements in this field, as it exceeded the global average of donated organs for each donor person after death, as it recorded 3.7, while the global average is 3.5.

For its part, the Chairman of the Intensive Care Council at the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA), Director of the Organ Donation Unit at Al Mafraq Hospital, Dr. Hala Abu Zaid Ahmed, confirmed that the UAE program for organ transplantation carries with it a humanitarian message in tolerance and giving, noting that Mafraq Hospital is committed to In cooperation with families who wish to donate organs, stressing that the organ donation unit at Al Mafraq Hospital includes a team of competent professionals who care for the lives of patients, provide high care to them in the central care department and for all groups, and are committed to performing their duty, in accordance with laws and legislation It is established in the United Arab Emirates.

Challenges

Doctors who participated in the conference of the International Society for Donation and Organ Transplantation, which was recently held in the country, stressed that the biggest challenge facing the field of organ transplantation is the acute and chronic shortage of available human organs, which is the deficiency that leads to the death of dozens of patients on lists Waiting.

They added that there is another challenge regarding establishing coordination units for organ donation inside hospitals, to establish and clarify the proper procedures among medical personnel to ensure the success of the whole process.

The doctors explained that the organ transplant process from a deceased person to another neighborhood goes through several stages, beginning with an assessment of the eligibility of the deceased donor, and the validity and efficiency of the donated organ, in addition to coordination between the place of harvesting the desired organ and the destination in which the transplant will take place, including ways and means Move the member between the two places.

The transportation and transplantation of human organs and tissues is now organized in accordance with the provisions of a federal law decree, which applies to operations that take place within the state, or in its free zones.

The goals of the decree include: organizing the conduct of transplants, transplants, preserving and developing human organs and tissues, preventing trafficking in human organs and tissues, protecting the rights of people from whom or to whom human organs or tissues are transferred, organizing the process of donating organs and human tissues, and preventing the exploitation of the patient or donor need.

400 employees

Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA) affirmed that its facilities apply the highest international standards for managing organ donation, and adheres to international standards, appropriate policies and procedures to enable community members to donate their organs after death and save other lives, pointing out that each donor benefits from its members eight patients who need organ transplants In the event that the best international practices are followed, according to his desire, that of his relatives, health status, nature and causes of death.

SEHA confirmed the establishment of an integrated donation and organ transplant program, which helps enable community members to exercise their right to donate organs after death, thus saving the lives of patients with organic failure.

She added that all employees in the intensive care departments in Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Tawam Hospitals, Al Ain and Al Mafraq, who are doctors, nurses and technicians, are qualified to carry out organ transplants, pointing to the training of about 400 medical personnel to support this type of operation.

Comprehensive program

The “Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi” is the first and only hospital for multiple organ transplants in the Emirates. Hospital doctors have succeeded in achieving an important achievement, by developing a comprehensive program for multiple organ transplants, to save the lives of patients suffering from difficult conditions, as the hospital performed the first two surgeries of the liver and lung from a deceased donor, to complete the main transplant surgeries, namely the kidneys, heart, liver and lung. , From deceased donors, after he witnessed the first heart transplant, and was preceded by the first kidney transplant from a deceased donor.

A life application

The Ministry of Health and Community Protection has indicated that the implementation of Hayat is linked to the national organ donation program, and was launched early last year.

She added that it is permissible for every person, in which he has full capacity, to express his desire to donate one of his organs, parts thereof, or tissues, after his death. It also reserves his right to change his will at any time, without restriction or condition.

The application contains three stages: The first registration of the donor. The second is to register patients who need an organ transplant. The third is to conduct a smart study, to know the result of histological compatibility between the patient and the donor.

6 stages of organ transportation

The Chairman of the Intensive Care Council at the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA), Director of the Organ Donation Unit at Al Mafraq Hospital, Dr. Hala Abu Zaid, confirmed that there are six phases through which the organ transplant process passes: Identifying the deceased person brain, after performing the necessary checks to make sure Brain death, then care and maintenance of organs to remain in a condition suitable for donation until the date of transfer, in preparation for transplantation into the receiving patient, then informing the receiving patient, and this is followed by a medical evaluation procedure to ensure conformity and safety of the donor from infectious diseases, then the surgical procedure for organ transplantation, and finally a case management The deceased And the completion of the burial procedures.

Hala Abu Zaid indicated that the organ donation unit at Al-Mafraq Hospital obtained the accreditation of the International Organization for Quality Management, to be the first unit of its kind in the UAE to obtain this distinguished international accreditation for quality management.

She added: "Accreditation is an important event, and places the UAE among the developed countries in the health sector, which provides a distinguished program for the transportation and transplantation of organs. It also provides the Mafraq Hospital with the possibility of training, education and awareness in the field of organ donation."

Kidney transplantation raises the patient's life rate from 10 to 12 years.

Hayat brings hope to patients with heart, pulmonary and kidney failure and cirrhosis.