KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Health and Population has launched an online system to provide real-time information for patients and potential organ donors.
The service was inaugurated by Health Minister Pradeep Paudel during an event on Monday.
The online platform, managed jointly by the Department of Health Services in Teku and the Shahid Dharmabhakta National Transplant Center, aims to streamline the organ donation and transplant process by providing immediate updates on organ availability, especially after brain death cases.
During the inauguration, Minister Poudel said the government was committed and was working on expanding transplant services across the country.
“Ninety-eight percent of kidney transplant recipients and 90 percent of lung transplant recipients are leading normal lives. We are committed to making these services more accessible,” he said.
Currently, government-level organ transplant services are available in Bhaktapur, Pokhara, and Surkhet, with plans to extend them to Bheri Hospital in Dang, Seti Provincial Hospital in Dhangadhi, and Bharatpur Hospital in Chitwan.
Dr Pukar Chandra Shrestha, head of the Shahid Dharmabhakta National Transplant Center, said that hospitals treating transplant patients will benefit from instant notifications about donor availability through this system.
“This will help save lives by reducing delays in communication,” he said.
Despite performing 1,335 kidney and 30 lung transplants over the last 12 years, the Shahid Dharmabhakta Center faces challenges in meeting demand.
While an estimated 3,000 kidney transplants are needed annually, only about 200 patients receive the procedure due to a shortage of donors. Other hospitals combined manage to perform transplants for just 100 additional patients.
Dr Kalpana Shrestha, a nephrologist at the center, believes the new system will help alleviate this issue.
“The integrated online system will make it much easier for both hospitals and patients, ultimately benefiting many people,” she said.
With the growing number of donors, patients, and hospitals, the online system is expected to provide critical, up-to-date information and significantly improve the efficiency of Nepal’s organ transplant network.
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