Manipal Hospitals Launches Organ Donation Summit to Boost Practices

Manipal Hospitals inaugurated the Organ Donation Summit 2025 in Kolkata on November 8, 2025. This event, part of the Manipal Organ Sharing & Transplant (MOST) initiative, gathered healthcare leaders, specialists, and policymakers to discuss strategies for enhancing organ donation practices in India.

The summit featured notable speakers, including Chief Guest Dr. Anil Kumar, Director of the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), alongside Dr. (Col) Avnish Seth, VSM, Country Head of MOST, and Dr. Philip Thomas, Professor of Transplant Surgery at the University of Texas Medical Branch. Their discussions focused on improving deceased organ donation rates and fostering collaboration among medical institutions.

With participation from eight national faculty members and 25 local faculty from various hospitals in Kolkata, the summit aimed to create a cohesive organ donation ecosystem. Notably, 14 senior faculty from Manipal’s North, South, and West regions also attended, marking a significant gathering of experts in the field.

Focus on Collaboration and Best Practices

Themed “Best Practices in Organ Donation,” the summit was organized in collaboration with ROTTO (East), the Indian Society of Organ Transplantation (ISOT) Kolkata, the Indian Society of Critical Care Medicine (ISCCM) Kolkata, and the MOHAN Foundation. The initiative seeks to enhance collaboration, raise awareness, and facilitate knowledge exchange to fortify the organ donation ecosystem, particularly in Eastern India.

During the summit, Dr. Anil Kumar led a session titled “Ethics in Organ Donation & Transplantation.” He emphasized the importance of transparency and accountability in organ donation processes, stating, “Ethics is the backbone of any organ donation and transplantation program. Building public trust is not just an obligation; it is the foundation on which the entire system stands.”

In discussing India’s organ donation landscape, Dr. (Col) Avnish Seth highlighted the country’s achievements and ongoing challenges. In 2024, India recorded 18,911 organ transplants, ranking third globally after the United States and China. Of these, 82% were from living donors, while 1,128 deceased donors contributed to 3,403 organ transplants. Despite these figures, he noted that the national organ donation rate remains low, at under one per million people.

Innovative Advances in Organ Donation

Dr. Seth also shared a groundbreaking achievement from Manipal Hospital in Dwarka, where a unique transplant procedure was performed just two days before the summit. This involved organ donation after cardiac death using Normothermic Regional Perfusion (NRP). After a 55-year-old woman was declared dead, her family’s consent allowed the medical team to restart circulation. In four hours, her organs showed remarkable recovery, leading to successful transplants.

The first day of the summit included various sessions that tackled contemporary challenges in organ transplantation. Discussions ranged from “Organ Donation in India & around the World,” led by Dr. S.K. Mathur from the Zonal Transplant Coordination Centre in Mumbai, to “Donation After Brain Death,” featuring Dr. Deepak Gupta from AIIMS, New Delhi.

The keynote address was delivered by Dr. Philip Thomas, who underscored the need for sustainable organ donation systems globally and India’s path forward. The event concluded with a lamp-lighting ceremony and a gala dinner, celebrating progress in transplantation medicine.

Dr. Ayanabh Debgupta, Regional COO of Manipal Health Enterprise Pvt. Ltd., addressed the participants, asserting the necessity of integrating organ and tissue donation into end-of-life care across every state in India. He stated, “Every 17 minutes, someone dies waiting for a transplant, while every 13 minutes, another person joins the waiting list. A single donor can save up to seven lives.”

Through initiatives like this summit, Manipal Hospitals continues to drive awareness and transformation in organ donation and transplantation across India. The Organ Donation Summit 2025 stands as a testament to the significance of knowledge exchange and collaboration in saving lives and enhancing ethical healthcare practices.