The Ministry of Health and Community Protection has completed its preparations to establish the National Center for Organ Transplantation, which will be based in the Ministry’s office. The Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing at the Ministry of Health and Community Protection, Dr. Amin Hussein Al-Amiri, revealed yesterday that the center will be concerned with three main tasks: establishing A national registry of donors, and a unified list of patients in need of organ transfer and transplantation, in addition to assuming responsibility for granting licenses to hospitals and centers specialized in organ transfer and transplantation, in cooperation with a “quartet committee” that evaluates the requesting parties. Licensing.
He revealed that the approval of citizens and residents of the country who wish to donate organs is documented by registering the approval on the ID card.
In detail, yesterday, the Ministry organized a press conference in Abu Dhabi to announce the “National Organ Transplantation Program,” which comes in implementation of a decree issued by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, regarding regulating the transfer and transplantation of human organs and tissues.
The press conference, which was chaired by the Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing at the Ministry, Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, covered an explanation of the legislation related to organ transplantation to keep pace with the latest international health standards in order to achieve the ambition of the UAE to be a model to be followed, at the regional and global levels, in the field of organ transfer and transplantation. and human tissue.
During the conference, Al Amiri explained the five goals of the National Organ Transplant Program, which stipulate “regulating the conduct of transfer, transplantation, preservation and development of human organs and tissues, preventing trafficking in human organs and tissues, protecting the rights of persons from whom or to whom human organs or tissues are transferred, organizing the process of donating organs and tissues.” humanity, and preventing exploitation of the patient’s or donor’s needs.”
Al Amiri stressed that Federal Decree Law No. (5) of 2016, issued by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, keeps pace with the latest international health standards and provides a legislative system for organ transplantation, and stresses the UAE’s commitment to criminalizing trafficking in organ transplantation, pointing out This distinguishes the country from other countries, as it aspires to be a model to be emulated at the regional and global levels in this field.
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Goals The Ministry of Health and Community Protection has set five goals for the National Organ Transplantation Programme, which are: – Organizing the transfer, transplantation, preservation and development of human organs and tissues. – Preventing trafficking in human organs and tissues. – Protecting the rights of persons from or to whom human organs or tissues are transferred. – Organizing the process of donating human organs and tissues. – Preventing exploitation of the patient’s or donor’s needs. • “Agriculture” will constitute a sustainable solution for those suffering from cancer, heart disease, lung and kidney failure, and liver cirrhosis. • UAE legislation permits the transfer and transplantation of human organs and tissues between living organisms directly, or through reciprocal transfer. • 4 health facilities licensed for organ transplantation in the Emirates: Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Cleveland Clinic Hospital, Mediclinic City Hospital, and Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital. 6 deceased saved the lives of 22 people During the press conference, the Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing at the Ministry, Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, reviewed the achievements achieved thanks to the implementation of the legislative system for organ transplantation, explaining that the donation of six people, after death, contributed to saving the lives of 22 sick people, who benefited from 12 kidneys. , three livers, four lungs, two hearts, and a pancreas, while the number of organ transplant operations in the country reached 13, as nine organs were transferred to Saudi Arabia, and there are now four facilities. A licensed organ transplant clinic is Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Cleveland Clinic, Mediclinic City Hospital, and Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital. Al Amiri said: “In parallel with these achievements, and in order to implement the best international practices, and to ensure unified procedures at the state level, the National Committee for Organ Transplantation hosted a delegation from the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation and the Organ Donation Institute in Spain (DTI), because the Spanish model for organ transplantation is the best in the world.” Nearly 180 specialists from various medical bodies were successfully trained, in addition to sending eight experts to Barcelona to attend the advanced intensive course from SEHA and the hospitals of the Ministry of Health and Community Protection. The Health Office of the Ministry of Presidential Affairs, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi and the UAE University. |
He pointed out that “organ transplantation will constitute a sustainable solution for a large number of patients, especially those suffering from cancer, heart disease, pulmonary failure, cirrhosis, and kidney failure, because these surgeries lead to complete recovery,” stressing the UAE’s commitment to criminalizing the trade in organ transplantation because it represents an affront to human dignity.
Al Amiri explained that UAE legislation provided appropriate solutions for treating people who need an organ or tissue transplant, as it permitted the transfer and transplantation of human organs and tissues between living people up to the fourth degree, whether directly or through reciprocal transfer, with an emphasis on respecting specific conditions related to not harming the donor. While in the case of a donation from a deceased person, the legislation requires an explicit will from the donor before death, officially documented, whether by a notary public or including this in the identity card data.
He said: “As part of the state’s efforts to protect patients from falling prey to non-specialized or reliable organ transplant centers outside the country, to which our patients previously went and some of whom returned with chronic and serious diseases, such as AIDS, liver disease, and others, international centers specialized in organ transplantation will be opened.” In the country, establishing a national bank for organs, and building a database to register those wishing to donate after death, which also contribute to stimulating medical tourism in the country and the influx of new investments.
He added: “Our role is to spread this culture, and to emphasize the importance of social and educational awareness in this context, in addition to legal and medical endeavors and religious guidance, in order to motivate people to donate their organs, because it contributes to alleviating the pain of thousands of patients, reducing the burden on hospitals, and reducing financial costs.” On the state and society, and stimulating and encouraging insurance companies to launch new packages related to organ transplantation and transfer.”
A register of donors…and a unified list of patients
In response to a question from Emirates Today, Al Amiri stated that the National Center for Organ Transplantation will be established soon at the Ministry’s headquarters, and will be concerned with creating a national registry for donors and a unified list of patients in need of organ transfer and transplantation, in addition to assuming responsibility for granting licenses to hospitals and centers specialized in organ transfer and transplantation. In cooperation with a four-part committee that evaluates the entities requesting a license.
He continued: “The committee consists of an official from the National Center for Organ Transplantation, another from the Ministry of Health, a third from the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation, and a final one from the Spanish Center for Organ Transplantation.”
4000 cases of kidney failure
Al-Amiri said that organ transplantation operations began with the development of pharmacology, which preserved patients with organ failure as much as possible, and the science of resuscitation or intensive care medicine, which led to the death of a segment of people with the possibility of their organs remaining functioning for a certain period after death, which led to the convergence of the two sciences or The two branches contributed to the availability or possibility of organ transplantation, but at a rate not exceeding 0.5% of the total deceased, they are the ones who can donate their organs.
Al Amiri revealed that there are more than 4,000 cases of kidney failure within the country, and it cannot be said that all of them require organ transplantation, pointing out that according to global rates, there are more than 130,000 organ transplant operations performed, of which 70% are for the kidneys, followed by the liver, then the heart and lungs.
Organ donation culture
The Chairman of the National Committee for Organ Transplantation, Dr. Ali Abdul Karim Al-Obaidli, stressed the importance of spreading the culture of organ donation among citizens and residents of the country, and building an integrated partnership between government and private health agencies and charitable institutions to achieve the desired goals, in addition to the necessity of integration with the GCC countries through aspects of cooperation. different.
Al-Obaidli reviewed the six cases that carried out organ transplant operations in the country, indicating that the first case was done by a post-mortem donor at Al-Qassimi Hospital, which contributed to saving the lives of five people, while the second case of donation took place from Fujairah Hospital, where the deceased saved the lives of three people. The third case is in Cleveland Hospital Abu Dhabi, and the deceased saved the lives of three people, including a person who underwent the first heart transplant in the country. As for the fourth, it was donated from the Saudi German Hospital for a two-week-old girl, and her parents took care after confirming her death. To donate her kidneys, in case it embodies the depth of their human feelings, which contributed to saving the life of a patient who needs two kidneys.
Al-Obaidli said, “The organ donation process, which took place in Sheikh Khalifa Medical City in Ajman, was the fifth, and it contributed to saving the lives of four people. He donated one of his kidneys to a 14-year-old (Jordanian) child, and the transplant was performed in Sheikh Khalifa Medical City in Abu Dhabi, while The second kidney was sent to a 42-year-old citizen suffering from kidney failure, and a liver was transferred to the Cleveland Clinic Hospital in Abu Dhabi to save a 60-year-old citizen patient. This is the first liver transplant in the country, while the lungs were transferred to a patient suffering from lung failure in Saudi Arabia. The sixth donation took place at Fujairah Hospital, and three people were saved, by donating two kidneys that were transplanted at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City in Abu Dhabi and Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, as well as the first transplant. “Lung in the country, done in Cleveland.”
12 medical fields in “ID”
Al-Obaidli confirmed that the smart chip of the ID card includes 12 fields to store the health data of its owner, one of which documents the owner’s consent to donate his organs if he expresses a desire to do so, in addition to including blood type, chronic diseases, infectious diseases, allergic diseases, disabilities and congenital deformities, and surgical operations performed. For the card holder, surgical procedures, primary and secondary vaccinations, medications he takes long-term, devices or stents installed for him, in addition to the date of the last update.
In turn, the Director of the Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dr. Amer Sharif, praised the humanitarian decision of the families of the deceased, who, at the height of their ordeal, chose to be a reason to save the lives of others.
He pointed out that the university was the first educational institution in the country to run a program dealing with organ transplantation, especially kidneys, by strengthening the partnership with the private sector and cooperating with Mediclinic City Hospital in Dubai Healthcare City.
Raising police awareness of the culture of donation
The Director General of the Federal Criminal Police at the Ministry of Interior, Brigadier General Hamad Ajlan Al Amimi, stressed the Ministry’s keenness to spread a culture of legal awareness of the forms of risks and challenges through its specialized departments, and to carry out preventive awareness campaigns in coordination with the relevant government agencies, pointing out the existence of close and continuous cooperation between government institutions and agencies. To enhance preventive awareness efforts to protect society, individuals, and people’s safety.
Al Amimi added that the UAE is one of the first countries in the region to commit to criminalizing trafficking in organ transplants, because it represents an affront to human dignity, stressing that the Ministry contributed to formulating a comprehensive national strategy to combat human trafficking, and preparing plans, programs and mechanisms to implement it in coordination with the relevant authorities in the country.
He said: “We work in coordination with the competent authorities and concerned parties to provide protection and support for those affected by human trafficking, including a care and rehabilitation program to help victims integrate into society. Among the crimes that fall within the crimes of human trafficking are those related to the illegal sale and trade of human organs.” Legal, Federal Law No. 51 of 2006 amended by Law No. (1) of 2015 stipulates that organ removal and trafficking are considered crimes punishable by law, or if the act causes… As a result of the crime, the victim suffers an incurable disease or permanent disability.
In turn, the Director General of the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation, Dr. Faisal Shaheen, stressed the importance of activating the exchange of organs between the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council “in a way that serves the solidarity of services provided to patients with organ failure in the region, and the possibility of benefiting UAE patients by registering in the list of patients with organ failure in the Gulf countries, as well as The possibility of registering citizens of the GCC countries in the country, which will contribute to the launch of a sustainable program for organ transplantation, as is the case among European countries and North America.”
He said, “The health facilities and expertise present in the Emirates are considered a qualitative addition to all countries in the region.”
