Organ Transplantation Institute launch in Kozhikode (Kerala)
The Government of Kerala has decided to establish an Institute of Organ and Tissue Transplant at Kozhikode. It is being established as an Apex Institute for research, training and patient care in the area of organ transplantation and allied activities. This Apex Institute with skilled doctors, researchers and health workers can be developed as a Centre of Excellence.
Soaring number of patients, dearth in the availability of organs and lack of other basic facilities including good doctors are the issues that currently prevail in the organ transplant sector. Since organ transplantation is very expensive and 90% of the transplants are conducted in the private sector, majority of those who are in need of transplant succumb to death, as they are unable to bear the associated costs. In such a context, through this Institute, the Government of Kerala aims to ensure organ transplant at a low cost, create the required manpower through various super-specialty courses and research programmes, administer the requisite training and adopt the required action plan for finding and providing healthy organs of the diseased to suitable patients.
According to the Concept Note prepared by the HLL Infra Tech Services Limited (HITES) - a public sector undertaking under the Government of India, the total cost of the setting up the Institute of Organ and Tissue Transplant will be Rs. 558.68 crores (Phase I Rs. 373.68 crore + Phase II Rs. 185 crores). Funds will be procured from the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) to establish the Institute according to a Master Plan within a 25 acre campus, and implement the scheme. The Institute is proposed as a Super Specialty Centre with a 489 bedded hospital which includes 219 general beds, 42 special ward beds, 58 ICU beds, 83 HDU beds, 16 Operation Rooms, Dialysis Centre and a Centre for Transplantation Research.
In Phase I, 330 beds are planned along with 10 Operation Rooms. 180 beds and 6 Operation Rooms are planned in Phase II. The Institute is proposed to perform 1,100 corneal transplants, 500 kidney transplants, 320 liver transplants, 15 intestinal transplants, 15 pancreas transplants, 50 heart transplants, 40 lung transplants, 120 bone marrow transplants and 300 soft tissue / digits / hands / bone / face transplants per year, at the end of 5 years from its inception. The Institute is estimated to have an area of 60,000 sq. mt. With allied services, parking, auditorium, guest house, hostels and quarters, the total area is estimated to be above 175,000 sq. mt.
There will be 14 Specialty Departments and Divisions in Phase I, and 7 in Phase II. 31 academic courses are planned and some of them will be the first in the country. As far as academic programmes go, super specialty courses, post-doctoral fellowship courses, specialty nursing courses, transplant technician courses and transplant coordinator courses will be offered. A dedicated research facility with an aim to perform basic, translational and clinical research in all areas of transplantation including transplant biology, transplantation medicine, cell therapy, stem cells, transplant immunology etc. will also be created in the Institute.
As a State University established under an act of the Kerala Legislative Assembly, it will function as an Autonomous Institution under the Government of Kerala. An Institute Body and a Governing Body will be created. Director will act as the head of the Institute. 50 percent of the overall manpower - faculty, scientists, nursing staff, technical staff, medical social workers, transplant coordinators and others - will be either tenure based or on contract.
Currently only USA and China have dedicated transplant centres. The Institute of Organ and Tissue Transplant at Kozhikode will be the first of its kind in the country. A dedicated institute for organ, tissue and cell transplantation with highly motivated doctors, scientists and health care workers will be a game changer in this field. Once established, it will have the potential to place Kerala at par with highly developed countries, with regard to organ transplantation. Such a Centre in the public sector will significantly bring down the cost of organ transplantation. It will benefit the poor and also promote medical tourism.