'Organ Transplantation Programme' to be launched in Lahore

Transplantation of human organ, liver, kidney and heart would be start in Lahore very soon and for this purpose Lahore General Hospital will be the main centre for organ harvesting under 'Human Organ Transplantation Programme'.
Under this programme, heart transplantation will be carried out in Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) whereas liver and kidney transplantation would be done in Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore and LGH. This was announced by Principal Postgraduate Medical Institute (PGMI) and chairman of the programme Professor Tariq Salahuddin after a meeting with a team of the hospital.
Salahuddin said National Assembly of Pakistan has already passed law in February 2010 with regard to organ transplantation. He further said renowned religious scholars from Egypt and Iran and other Muslim countries have given consent in the favour of transplantation. In the light of law passed by NA, donor cards would be issued to the patients and these organs would be collected after the brain death of the donor, he added.
He informed that in Europe and North America, most of organs are taken from brain dead patients, these patents carry organ-donor card. He added that Sri Lanka is the prime donor of cornea.
The meeting decided that the associate professors of neuro-surgery Dr Khalid Mehmood would be the co-ordinator of the programme while Prof// of Anaesthesia PGMI, Dr Khalid Bashir would be responsible for intensive care of the patients.
It also decided that awareness campaign regarding human organs donation would be launched at a massive level to convince people to donate organs for saving other lives and co-operation of Ulema, social workers, medical experts and media would also be sought.
All the process would be maintained transparent and the entire team would execute their professional services with humanitarian spirit. Shaikh Zayed Hospital team comprised Professor Muhammad Saeed, Professor Tahir Shafi, Professor Nauman Ahmad, Professor Altaf Alam, Dr Amir Latif, Dr Tariq Ali Bengish, Dr Waqar Ali Shah, Professor Col. Cheema (retd) of PIC, Professor Waheed Ahmad, Dr Irfan and Professor Salman Waris, Professor Khalid Bashir and Dr Khalid Mehmood of PGMI.