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August 13 event to honour families of brain-dead organ donors

August 13 event to honour families of brain-dead organ donors

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Looking to counter growing misconceptions about organ donation, the Kerala State Organ and Tissue Transplantation Organization (K-SOTTO) has decided to honour deceased organ donors and their families.
The special event will be held in Thiruvananthapuram on World Organ Donation Day—August 13. The event comes at a critical time, when organ donations from brain-dead patients in Kerala are on a steady decline despite awareness campaigns.
The programme aims to recognise 120 families who made the courageous decision to donate the organs of their loved ones who were declared brain dead, even as negative campaigns and legal controversies have cast a shadow over the initiative.
Families from other states, including Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, who chose to donate the organs of their loved ones who were declared brain dead in Kerala, will be in attendance, too.
'There has been overwhelming response to the programme. It's as if the families were waiting for such an event,' said Dr Noble Gracious, K-SOTTO executive director.
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