Facility for organ transplant institute to become operational in three months in Kozhikode

A temporary facility for the Kerala Institute of Organ Transplantation is set to get operational in three months at the Kozhikode Government Medical College Hospital.

The facility will include two operation theatres, 10 ICU beds and 20 ward beds. Around 15 to 20 footfalls are expected per day in the OP. The dialysis unit, lab facilities and other facilities will be shared from the medical college hospital.

The main institute is set to come up on the campus of the Government Hospital Of Dermatology, Chevayur. An administrative sanction was given for establishing the institute at a cost of ₹643.88 crore earlier this year. An amount of ₹14.40 crore has been sanctioned for the temporary facility, which will include purchase of equipment and civil works.

The institute is expected to significantly reduce the cost involved in transplantation surgeries. “The idea is to set up a dedicated centre for all kinds of transplantations. Patients can undergo transplantation surgeries at just one-third of the cost generally charged by the private sector. It will be free for those in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) category. The idea is to make these life-saving surgeries accessible to all. A liver transplant can cost ₹30 lakh in the private sector and we could offer it to the public at ₹10 lakh. The institute will make organ transplants affordable for the common man,” an official said. 

Once the institute is set up, all transplants will be made possible under a single umbrella. The targeted goal after the institute has been operational for five years is to carry out 600 kidney transplants and 360 liver transplants per year. “In ten years, we want to double this. We intend to develop a dedicated team of doctors for this,” the official added.