New Delhi: Amid an unbearable loss, a family in Faridabad made a decision that turned the death of their 21-year-old daughter into a chance at life for others. After doctors declared her brain dead following a head injury sustained in a road accident, the family consented to deceased organ donation, allowing her liver, two kidneys and corneas to be retrieved for transplantation. The tranplant saved patients in different hospitals of Delhi and Faridabad.The young woman was brought to Amrita Hospital, Faridabad, late on Aug 20. She was admitted to the Neuro ICU, where doctors continued intensive treatment. Despite efforts, the severity of her brain injury proved unsurvivable, and she was declared brain dead.It was then that the family was counselled about organ donation. In their darkest hours, they agreed.Her liver, two kidneys and corneas were retrieved and allocated through the govt-regulated organ allocation system and approved waiting lists. One kidney was transplanted into a patient at Amrita Hospital, while the other organs were allocated to patients at designated transplant centres.However, saving the donated organs was a race against time. Since the accident was a medico-legal case, the donation process had to move alongside statutory clearances and post-mortem procedures. To ensure that the organs could reach their intended recipients within the narrow window available for transplantation, Haryana and Delhi Police created a interstate green corridor. Police and traffic teams coordinated the movement across state borders, cutting delays during transportation.Dr Gaurav Kakkar, head of Neurocritical Care & Neuroanaesthesia at Amrita Hospital, said: “There are moments in medicine when, despite everything we do, a life cannot be saved. What this family did next was extraordinary”.The case comes at a time when awareness around deceased organ donation remains a major public health concern. According to National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation officials, while India typically sees around 14,500 kidney, over 5000 livers, over 200 heart and lung transplant annually, it needs over 2 lakh kidneys, over 50,000 lungs and heart every year to save crucial lives.
