The number of people voluntarily donating organs in Vietnam has increased sharply.
In 2018, after Hai An donated her cornea, the number of people registering to donate organs in Vietnam skyrocketed, accounting for one-third of the total number of donors over the past five years.
To date, the total number of people registered to donate organs after death or brain death has reached 19,300. They are guided and received by the National Organ Transplant Coordination Center.
The center started operating in 2013, with only 5 people, in the context of the country's medical industry having achieved many achievements in organ transplantation, Mr. Trinh Hong Son, Director of the Center said at the founding anniversary ceremony on the morning of November 29.
Previously, the concept of organ and tissue donation in Vietnam was very limited. When it came to donating a body part after death, many people were skeptical and afraid. In 2014, after one year of operation, the Center only managed to mobilize more than 200 people to register to donate organs and tissues. These people were mainly leaders, staff of the Center itself and some doctors.
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The story of Hai An donating her corneas has spread to help people better understand the meaning of organ donation. |
In 2017, the center mobilized more people to access organ/tissue donation and brought the total number of registered donors to 12,000. However, large-scale mobilization is still very difficult due to public understanding and perception.
The event of Hai An donating her corneas earlier this year moved the whole society. The impact of the mother and daughter's story has inspired many people to donate, such as Major Le Hai Ninh, Van Nhi, Nguyen Ngoc Khiem... Hai An, a 7-year-old girl in Hanoi, who had a brain tumor and passed away in February this year, donated her corneas and saved the eyes of 2 patients.
Since baby Hai An, more than 7,300 people have voluntarily come to the Center to register their names on the list of people willing to donate organs/tissues when they die or are brain dead.
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Viet Tien highly appreciated the efforts and successes of the National Organ Transplant Coordination Center over the past 5 years. He hopes that people understand that donating tissues and organs is a humanitarian act, contributing to saving people with terminal illnesses.
The National Organ Transplant Coordination Center has cooperated with Vietnam Airlines Corporation to coordinate free organ transportation, creating conditions for doctors to use timely flights to bring tissues and organs to patients in need of rescue.
| As of August 31, there were 3,378 organ transplants nationwide. Of these, 3,223 were kidney transplants, 125 were liver transplants, 26 were heart transplants, 1 was kidney-pancreas transplant, 1 was heart-lung transplant, and 2 were lung transplants. Notably, 6 of these transplants involved cross-Vietnam organ coordination. |
