Brain-dead man’s family donates his organs, saves 7 lives

When 28-year-old Guruprasad was declared brain-dead, his family of six members was devastated beyond relief. But even in the hour of grief, their decision to donate his organs gave life to seven ailing people.

Guruprasad was the family’s sole breadwinner and worked at a steel fabrication industry in Peenya. He was declared brain-dead after steel sheets fell on him on May 30. A native of Puttur, Dakshina Kannada, Guruprasad worked as a supervisor at the factory. During a routine inspection, steel sheets weighing more than 250 kg fell on his chest.

His colleagues rushed to his rescue and removed the sheets. Guruprasad had become unconscious and was rushed to a hospital. He was later referred to the Sparsh Hospital.

R Chinnadurai, Chief Intensivist at the hospital, said the patient was brought in a state of coma and had low blood pressure. “A scan showed his lungs were punctured and his brain was in a comatose state as it did not receive enough oxygen due to the accident. After 48 hours of observation, a committee of doctors declared him brain-dead,” he added.

Guruprasad’s brother-in-law, Mohan, said the family had lost its pillar of support and that his parents and four sisters were devastated. He said the decision to donate Guruprasad’s organs was difficult: “It was hard for the family to agree to the organ donation as we hoped he would recover. Later when we realised that Guruprasad’s organs would actually help save seven people’s lives, we agreed to it.”

Guruprasad’s liver, kidneys, heart valves and eyes were retrieved and transplanted into needy recipients.

The transplant was co-ordinated by the workers of Jeevasarthakathe, a government agency for organ transplantation.