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Nepali Orphan Gets New Heart in India Milestone
22 Dec
Summary
- A Nepali orphan received a life-saving heart transplant at India's General Hospital.
- The hospital achieved a first by performing a heart transplant at a district level.
- Judicial intervention was crucial for the transplant due to donor allocation laws.
In a groundbreaking medical achievement, Nepali national Durga Kami, also known as Arpana, received a life-saving heart transplant on Monday, December 22, at the General Hospital in Ernakulam. This historic surgery positions the General Hospital as the first district hospital in India to successfully perform a heart transplant, a feat celebrated by hospital authorities. The procedure was vital for Ms. Kami, a 22-year-old orphan, who had been on a super-urgent transplant list due to critical health complications.
The path to the transplant was complex, involving judicial intervention to navigate legal stipulations that typically grant priority to Indian nationals for donor organs. The vital heart was sourced from 46-year-old S. Shibu, a resident of Kollam, who was declared brain-dead at the Government Medical College Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. This heart was successfully transplanted into Ms. Kami, who had been seeking medical treatment in India for a year.
