Three patients at three hospitals get organs from accident victim

Kolkata: Organs of a brain dead patient were transplanted to three patients in three hospitals in the city on Tuesday.

Kolkata Police successfully arranged three green corridors from Minto Park area to SSKM Hospital, Calcutta Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) and a private hospital on Eastern Metropolitan (EM) Bypass near Kadapara to facilitate the shifting of the organs.

According to sources, Chinmoy Ghosh (35) of Memari in East Burdwan met with an accident on July 10. When he was riding his scooter to reach home, a truck allegedly hit him. Immediately after the accident he was rushed to Burdwan Medical College and Hospital. Late in the night when his condition deteriorated, Ghosh was shifted to a nursing home near Minto Park in Kolkata.

Ghosh's family members said due to an internal hemorrhage his condition was deteriorating.

On Sunday, doctors informed that Ghosh's chances of survival was almost nil. "When we were told that he would not survive, we thought of donating his organs to help other people. We got in touch with state Health department to get the process started," said Arunava Mitra, a relative of the patient.

On Monday afternoon, Ghosh's family was informed by the doctors that he condition was similar to being brain dead and it could only be ascertained after government doctors examine him.

In the afternoon, a team of doctors from multiple state-run hospitals and Sasthya Bhavan visited the nursing home and examined Ghosh. Later, he was officially declared brain dead by the doctors.

All state-run and private hospitals were contacted to find patients who needed his organs. Ghosh's heart was given Surajit Patra, who is a CMCH patient. He had problems in his heart valve.

The liver and one of his kidneys were sent to SSKM Hospital where two patients Bidhan Adhikary of Bongaon received the liver and Rama Kumari Dhanu of Mominpur received the kidney.

Another kidney was taken to a private hospital on EM Bypass near Kadapara which was provided to IAS officer Chandan Sinha.

Ghosh's eyes were provided to a private eye hospital in the city and the skin was preserved at the skin bank in SSKM Hospital.

Ghosh's family members alleged that the nursing home manipulated the medical bills. They said when they requested for a waiver, nursing home authorities reportedly told them that they had deducted Rs 33,000 in the bill. However, after getting the bill, Ghosh's family members discovered that only Rs 7,000 was waived off.

Mitra alleged that even after Ghosh was declared brain dead, the nursing home continued charging them.

He said after cremation and other rituals are completed they would lodged a complaint with health commission in this regard.