Doctors can play important role in building awareness of organ donation: President Murmu

New Delhi, Dec 23: President Droupadi Murmu on Monday said there is hesitancy among people towards organ donation and urged the medical fraternity to motivate people for the noble cause.

Addressing the 6th Convocation ceremony of Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung Hospital in the national capital, she underlined that the list of people waiting for organ transplant is growing.

“To address this issue, development of artificial organs and organ donation by the families of the deceased is necessary,” Murmu said.

“There is a kind of hesitancy among people towards organ donation. Doctors can play an important role in removing this and can help build awareness to motivate people for the noble cause,” she stated.

To boost organ donation, National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) was set up in this institute, she said.

Growing use of technology in medical stream has made collaboration between engineering and medical institutes very important, she said.

The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), mRNA technology, robotics and the likes are going to bring a major change in the field of medical science, she added.

Murmu mentioned that she recently inaugurated India’s first CAR-T cell therapy developed through collaboration between the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay and Tata Memorial Hospital (TMH).

She urged the Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung hospital to tie up with premier engineering and technical institutes to boost research and innovation.

Interdisciplinary knowledge is beneficial for everyone, she said.

The president said medical profession is unlike any other profession. It involves the noble cause of treating and curing people of diseases and saving lives. She said doctors provide the healing touch to humanity and they can make a difference between life and death.

“You have a big responsibility being doctors, because you will be taking care of people’s health,” she stated.

Crediting Safdarjung Hospital for treating 10,000 people every day, she said, “It is a matter of pride that Safdarjung Hospital is among the top 20 medical institutes in the country as per the latest NIRF rankings.”

She also noted the achievements in the healthcare sector during the last 10 years. “The number of medical institutions has increased and the number of PG seats has doubled. New AIIMS have been established and undergraduate courses have been introduced in these institutions.”

“The recently announced Ayushman Vay Vandana scheme will help catering to the needs of the 70 plus elderly population,” she said.