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HOW TO DONATE EYES ?
What
are the steps involved for donating eyes ?
Is it a simple procedure ? |
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Yes - the procedure is very simple !!
A very simple procedure which can be implemented anywhere.
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Call
1919 (all over India) or the nearest eye bank. |
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Keep
the Death Certificate ready. |
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Close
the eye lids. Cover the closed lids with moist cotton. |
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Switch
off the fan (switch on the air-conditioner, if any). |
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Raise
the donor's head by six inches by placing a pillow underneath
the head. |
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SOCIAL & ETHICAL QUESTIONS :
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Donation
- What does it mean ? |
| Gift,
benefaction, charity, grant, beneficence, alms, contribution. |
| Eye
Donation - what does it mean ? |
| When eyes of the deceased are removed for the purpose of restoring
vision to the corneally blind recipient (at no cost to the recipient),
it is termed as an eye donation |
What
is an eye bank ?
An eye bank is the link between the donor and the recipient as well
as the eye surgeon. It is also the center for dissemination of accurate
information to the public.It is an organization recognized by the
Government to collect, process, evaluate, screen and distribute
human tissue (corneas) to those who require transplants. An eye
bank is usually a public charitable trust with several income tax
exemptions (80G, 35AC and FCRA) given specifically to collect public
funds for the purpose of a noble cause.
| Why
do blind recipients "pay" huge amounts of money to receive "sight"
when it is termed as an Eye Donation (in the city of Mumbai)
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Although
the burden of eyeball collection from the deceased still remains
with the eye banks, the cost of eyeball processing, surgery
and hospitalization remains with the blind recipient (barring
government hospitals) ..... and yet remains termed ironically as an "eye donation"
This
is mainly because eye banking is neither looked upon as a
specialised medical fraternity nor as a noble function but
as a mere social cause meant only to enhance social credibility.
Eye banking is controlled by politics and eye banks are run
by architects, lawyers, chartered accountants and ophthalmic
surgeons with vested interests (mainly in the city of Mumbai)
.... anyone except professional eye bankers. In other words,
eye donation has been commercialised in a very subtle way.
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Is there any organisation which promotes
the concept of "true gift of sight" ?
Yes. Autonomous public charitable trusts such as Tarun Mitra Mandal,
Mumbai and the Ghaswala Vision Foundation, Mumbai, India promote
the concept of a "true gift of sight" by covering the cost of surgery,
surgeons fees, cost of hospitalisation, etc.
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What
is the role of the Government of India ? |
The
Director of Health Services (Ophthalmology) has certified
several eye banks for eye ball, collection, processing and
cornea grafting. Together with Eye Bank Association of India,
Hyderabad, the Government has laid down clear procedures to
run an eye bank in terms of collection and processing. There
are a few eye banks in India who have also received recognition
from the International Federation of Eye & Tissue Banks, Baltimore,
USA.
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| What
is the role of the community ? |
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Sufficient awareness for
eye donation has been created in the past 25 years. A latent
desire to help is present amongst a wide majority of the literate
as well as the illiterate class of people in India. However,
incorrect and inadequate information has lead to poor response
from the community.
For example, the eye bank needs to have an information desk or a public
relations personnel who encourages the public to participate
in this noble cause instead of giving hostile answers to random
callers.
Secondly, the General practitioners and para medical staff
play a pivotal role in encouraging the concept of eye donation
but unfortunately a large majority are themselves ill informed. |
What is the need of the hour ?
Community awareness and participation to bring about "accountability
and transparency" in the
field of eye banking.
| Can
Information Technology create accountability and transparency
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Yes.
Any kind of banking is sure to benefit with the help of Information
Technology... and India being an IT super power can contribute
not only to our country but globally by successfully implementing
"online eye banking".
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What
is "online eye banking" ?
In brief, the entire process of eye ball collection, processing,
distribution and cornea grafting (surgery) goes paperless and there
after the analysis can be performed across several parameters not
only for one particular eye bank but eye banks across the country
or the globe. Online eye banking fulfills two extremely important
functions (i) provides complete transparency and accountability
(ii) measures performance of any individual eye bank in real time.
GENERAL QUESTIONS :
Who can be an eye donor ?
Anyone can be a donor irrespective of age, sex, blood group, religion,
caste or creed.
Is there a need to fill a DONOR Card ?
No. There is no need to fill a Donor Card anyone may do so if
it helps to spread the message of eye donation.
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What
are legal aspects of eye donation ? |
Eyes of the deceased cannot be removed
without the explicit written permission of next of kin in
India unlike other countries. Hence it is important to spread
the message of eye donation every single day of your life
and keep your near and dear ones informed of your wishes |
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Do
religious authorities approve of donating ones eyes ? |
Yes. All religious faiths support this
vital sight restoration program. |
Does eye donation disfigure the donor's face ? No. The
removal of the eyes does not produce disfigurement nor does it interfere
with the customary funeral arrangement
TECHNICAL QUESTIONS :
Is the whole eye used for transplant ?
No. Only the thin transparent layer
in front of the iris, called the cornea is used for transplant
Do cataracts or the use of spectacles render the corneas unfit
?
No. Both these conditions relate to the lens of the eye and
not the cornea.
Does the human body reject the transplanted donor's cornea ?
Corneas do not have any direct blood supply so the risk of rejection
is very low. Rejection, if they occur, can be suppressed by timely
medication.
What condition render the cornea unfit for grafting ?
Trained eye bank technicians and
ophthalmic surgeons decide the usefulness of collected eye balls.
Cornea of persons suffering from AIDS, jaundice, rabies, tetanus,
septicemia, and viral diseases are considered unfit for grafting.
What about diabetes or hypertension ?
Even donor with these condition can donate their eyes.
How will my donation be used ?
After the eyes are removed, they are processed, evaluated, screened
using blood tests and then given to the eye surgeon for transplant/cornea
grafting.
Is there any use for corneas which are for some reason unfit
for transplant ?
Corneas that, for technical reasons, are not used for vision
restoring corneal transplant, are invaluable for research .
Do corneal transplants guarantee sight to
all blind people ?
No. Transplants only help when the loss of sight is solely due to
corneal defect and the rest of the eye's mechanism is intact
| How
quickly should eyes be removed after death ? |
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The
eyes should be removed from the donor and sent to the processing
centre as soon as possible in order to avoid deterioration
of the cornea. The ideal time frame is 3-4 hours from the
"time of death to cornea preservation". If the cornea
is not placed in preservative media within "7 hours" from
the time of death, it was found unsuitable for optical keratoplasty (cornea grafting done for restoring vision)
according to research conducted by
Eye Bank Coordination & Research Center, Mumbai, India and
Santa Lucia International Eye Bank of Manila, Philippines. However, corneas from young donors
deteriorate at a slower rate.
On
the other hand, direct cornea removal from the donor if the
preferred method of eye donation in most countries. |
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Is
it necessary to transport the donor to the hospital after death
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No.
Eyebanks have personnel who will come to the donor's home
and remove the eyes. The procedure takes about 30-40 minutes. |
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