Centre issues SoP on transporting organs for first time

Union Health Ministry has issued Standard Operating Procedure (SOPs) for transporting human organs through various modes of travel such as air, road, railways and waterways. The SOPs issued by the government will serve as a guiding document for those involved in organ transplants across the country. Health Secretary Apurva Chandra said these SOPs are a roadmap for organ retrieval and transplant institutions across the country ensuring adherence to best practices and quality standards. He said, by streamlining organ transport process, government aims to maximise the utilisation of precious organs and offer hope to countless patients awaiting life-saving transplants.
A live organ needs to be transported between hospitals when both the organ donor and the organ recipient are in different hospitals either within the same city or in different cities. According to the SOPs for transportation by air, airlines carrying human organs can request the Air Traffic Control for priority take-off and landing of the aircraft and arrange front-row seats. Similarly, SOPs to facilitate transport of organs by road, trains and through ports via shipping have been issued to outline the essential guidelines and protocols on it. Organ transport SOPs have been developed in consultation with the NITI Aayog, concerned ministries and transplant professionals.
According to the SOPs, to facilitate transport of organs by ambulance and other vehicles, the "green corridor" may be provided for organ transport on the request of specific authorities or agencies.Dr Anil Kumar, Director of National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) said the transport of a live solid organ is an extremely critical activity since the organ has a limited shelf life and its transportation involves coordination between various agencies.Organ transport has been identified as a challenge under the National Organ Transplant Program, Kumar said.