Muscat: The number of registered organ donors on the Al Shifa portal, an online platform to register as donors, has reached more than 11,000, according to the Ministry of Health. The ministry has activated the programme to express desire to donate organs after death. This year alone, the ministry has carried out 17 kidney transplants for patients with different kidney ailments.
Additionally, a program to interview relatives of brain-dead people to offer organs to deserving patients after the donors’ death has been activated, a major step towards encouraging the noble deed.
This facility will align the brain-dead people and transplantation for eligible organ failure patients on national waiting lists in due course.
The details were revealed on the occasion of Omani Organ Donation Day, organized by the ministry, represented by the National Programme for Organ Transplant Department, under the auspices of HH Sayyid Kamil bin Fahd al Said, Secretary-General at the Secretariat-General for the Council of Ministers.
The event was attended by Dr Said bin Harib al Lamki, Under-Secretary of Health Affairs, and several officials from the Ministry of Health, civilian and military medical institutions, and medical personnel from various health institutions.
Speaking to the Observer, Professor Marti Miljanic, President of the Spanish Foundation for Donation and Organ Transplantation in Spain, said there had been positive signs from the potential donors towards this noble act, and the scenario in Oman is highly promising. This celebration comes as a continuation of the efforts of the ministry, represented by the National Programme for Organ Transplant Department, to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation through the launch of the national campaign, which was activated in all governorates this year in addition to developing organ transplant services in the country.
The event included a presentation by Dr Ahmed al Busaidy, Director of the National Organ Transplant Programme Department, who touched on what was accomplished during the year - a significant increase in kidney transplant operations. The ministry has also activated the corneal transplant operations program, and there is an increase in the number of registered people.
Many living organ donors and relatives of posthumous organ donors were honored, and an organ donation training course was also launched in cooperation with the Spanish Foundation for Organ Donation and Transplantation, which will continue till December 21. Further, the Ministry of Health has activated a program that allows the expression of the desire to donate organs after death by registering in the Shifa application.
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