A school teacher from Sirmour, Himachal Pradesh is no less than God for five families, to whom he gave a new meaning of life by donating his organs. Native of Kaffota village, 34-year-old Devinder Kumar was admitted in the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research on May 3, in a critical condition after he met with a fatal accident.
Despite best efforts by the team of experts, he couldn’t be saved and was declared brain dead. However, dealing with the loss of a near and dear one, his wife and family members consented for organ donation and after fulfilling the necessary procedures under the Transplantation of Human organs act, further action was taken.
Among the recipient of organ from this cadaver surgery are two youths Ramesh Kumar, 31. and Vijay Kumar, 34, who were struggling with their life as high blood pressure had damaged both their kidneys, following which they were surviving on dialysis.
Dharampal, younger brother of Ramesh said, “We heard that god comes to help us in human form, and this person who has saved the life of my brother is no less than god for me. For the past three years my elder brother was suffering from Kidney ailment and nobody from the family was able to donate their kidney because of blood group incompatibility.”
“Every other day we had to come from ludhiana to get dialysis done for my brother at PGI, which took a huge monetary toll on our family. However, few days back we got a call from PGI to reach there immediately but till then we were not aware of the fact that we have a donor. Only when all the tests results of the donor matched with that of my brother, that we came to know about the matter and we were exalted.”
Ramesh’s wife was also filled with tears of joy because after the diagnosis of kidney problem of her husband, she was quite skeptic about the future of her three little kids. “This transplant is going to change my life for ever and I am obliged to the donor and his family for this noble gesture,” she said.
According to sources, around five to six patients who were waiting for kidney donors in PGI were called after Devinder’s family consented to donate his organs. It was only after the tests which suggested the best possible recipient that the kidneys were transplanted.
Similarly 36-year-old Vijay Kumar was surviving on dialysis for the past two and half years and with passing time the process was taking a toll both on his body and pocket. He was among the five patients who were called by the PGI on emergency basis and when he was found compatible to receive the Kidney, the transplant was carried out
immediately.
Sources said that among other organs which were harvested from the body of the magnanimous donors are liver and cornea. The corneas were immediately transplanted in needy patients at PGI, whereas the liver has been sent to a hospital in Delhi for transplantation.
The family members of the person who have received the organs said that this noble gesture by the school teacher of a remote village in Himachal Pradesh has helped them realise the importance of organ donation and they will register themselves as organ donors at the earliest so that they can be of some help to others in need of organs.
There is a dearth of organs with the PGI, but the lists of people in need of organs are swelling by the day. In the Nephrology Department itself, there are many patients who are undergoing dialysis on a regular basis to just live, and hence, the PGI authorities have emotionally appealed to the people to come forward and be organ donors so that more lives could be saved.