Kolkata: Second organ donation in year’s first three weeks boosts 2020 drive

KOLKATA: The family of a 20-year-old second-year college student, who met with a fatal accident on January 7, donated his organs on Monday, making it the second donation in the first month of the new year. The youth’s heart, lungs and two kidneys were transplanted to four patients.
Sujoy Karmakar, the Kanchrapra College student was riding pillion on a friend’s motorcycle, headed for an examination centre in Haringhata, when the accident took place near Mohanpur.The rider, Papan Ghosh, died on the spot, while Karmakar suffered severe head injuries. He was first taken to JNM Hospital in Kalyani, from where he was shifted to SSKM Hospital’s trauma care centre (TCC) that was inaugurated last year. “Despite their efforts, doctors could not save Sujoy. The doctors told us Sujoy was brain death and counselled us to donate his organs,” said Sunjoy’s cousin, Dipannita Karmakar.

Dipannita, who studied health sciences, was aware of organ donations but she was initially apprehensive whether Sujoy’s elder brother Sudeb and mother Maya Rani would consent to the donations or not. Sujoy’s father Sukar Rajan had passes away when the youth was a toddler. “But his brother and mother readily agreed that we should donate Sujoy’s organs to help others live. At this time of grief, it gives us solace that Sujoy will continue to live in others,” said Dipannita.
The Kancharapara resident was declared brain dead at SSKM on Monday morning, once the family consented to the donation. ROTTO (Regional Organ and Tissue Transplant organisation) allocated the heart to Medical College and Hospital, the liver to Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, while SSKM was allowed to retain the two kidneys.
Last Monday, another road accident victim, Swapan Hazra, was declared brain dead and his heart, liver and kidneys were transplanted. The fact that this year’s first two donations have originated at SSKM Hospital, those involved in the movement hope to dispel the criticism that government hospitals recorded minimum brain-dead declarations.
Like this year, even 2019 had started on a bright note with two donations in a gap of four days in January, but the year ended with 11 donations only. The figure fell short of four donations than that in 2018. “The SSKM’s trauma care centre could be a great source for organs as the centre deals with accident victims with head injuries. We hope the unit would help increase organ donations,” said a source in the hospital.