City sees 2 green corridors: 47 km in just 54 minutes

For a city which is fast growing to be the organ transplant capital of the country, green corridor is no longer a new phenomenon. It witnessed two green corridors on Thursday. The first was created to transport the heart of a brain-dead man, the second to shift a brain-dead patient from one part of Bengaluru to another.

The harvested heart of brain-dead Chetan R, a 22-year-old man from Maddur in Mandya district, was transported from Sagar Hospitals in Tilak Nagar to Narayana Health City on Hosur Road in a green corridor.

The traffic police, for the fifth time in a row, created a successful green corridor to facilitate organ donation. According to the police, the ambulance left Sagar Hospitals at 2.15 pm and reached Narayana Hrudayalaya at 2.34 pm, covering 19 kms in as many minutes. Usually it takes at least 45 minutes to cover the distance on the stretch.

Chetan, who was working with a firm named KSS Technology in Peenya, had suffered serious injuries during an accident at his workplace on July 15. He was rushed to a hospital but nothing much could be done, his brother Narendra said.

“The collar of his shirt accidentally got tangled in a running machine. This chocked him and left him with spinal injuries. On July 16, we took him to Sagar Hospitals. Two days ago, his condition began to deteriorate and he was declared brain-dead on Wednesday,” Ravindra said.

Chetan’s father, a farmer, had refused to consent to organ donation. But the Zonal Coordination Committee of Karnataka for Transplantation (ZCCK) persuaded him. The family gave the consent at 2 am on Thursday, a ZCCK official said.

The family’s decision could help improve the lives of six people, said doctors at Sagar Hospitals. Dr Madan S Gaekwad, senior executive vice president, Sagar Hospitals, said that even the liver, kidneys and cornea of the patient were being harvested. The liver was sent to Apollo Hospitals while the cornea was given to Lions Eye Bank.

Speaking to reporters after the transplant, Dr Bagirath Raghuram, Cardiologist and Transplant Coordinator, Narayana Health City, said that the operation was successful. “The recipient, who hails from Patna, was awaiting a heart transplant for the last three months,” he added.

2nd green corridor

The second green corridor was created to help shift a brain-dead patient from Prolife Hospital in Hebbal to BGS Global Hospitals in Kengeri. Rajanna, 34, who had met with an accident while riding pillion on a bike on Wednesday, was declared brain-dead after he failed to respond to treatment. His organs would be harvested on Friday after being stabilised, according to the hospital management. The ambulance left Prolife Hospital at 4.10 pm and reached BGS Global Hospitals by 4.45 pm, covering a distance of 28 km.