Doctors warn of hidden goals to discredit Kuwait in organ transplantation
The doctors have warned of hidden hands seeking to distort Kuwait’s reputation in the field of organ transplantation, pointing out that the attack by one of the MPs and his statements about organ transplantation stopped cooperation with “Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi” for liver transplantation.
President of the Kuwaiti Society for Organ Transplantation, Dr. Mustafa Al-Moussawi, and Head of the Organ Provision Unit at the Ministry of Health, confirmed that the Society is making every effort to encourage organ donation and works under the supervision of the concerned authorities, stressing that some falsify facts and throw accusations arbitrarily for ulterior goals.
Al-Moussawi told Al-Qabas that cooperation with the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi for liver transplantation stopped after the accusations by one of the MPs, announcing the filing of a complaint by the Organ Transplantation Society accusing it of trafficking, and the prosecution is currently investigating the issue.
Specialized doctors stressed the need to support and develop organ transplantation operations in Kuwait to reduce the state’s burdens, support patients, and save lives through organ donation.
He spoke of 130 kidney transplant operations in the country during 2023, half of which will be from post-mortem donors.
He touched on the spread of organ donation after death, indicating that the total number of donors in Kuwait after death has begun to increase, and there are 2,000 young men and women who have registered to donate organs after death during the current year, expressing a categorical rejection of exploiting health issues for electoral gain.
Al-Moussawi stated that organ transplant operations include the heart, lung, liver, pancreas, intestines for children, corneas, and parts of arteries.
He revealed a meeting he had with the Minister of Health, Dr. Ahmed Al-Awadhi, and we asked to form a committee that includes all specialties in the field of organ transplantation, and the Minister of Health agreed to that, pointing out that the association aims to educate citizens about the importance of organ transplantation for patients in need, and to urge them to donate them in accordance with the provisions of applicable laws and regulations while highlighting the opinion of religion and law in this aspect.
He pointed out that since the start of the program to provide organs from deaths, Kuwait, through the Ministry of Health, has been sharing organs that are not transplanted in Kuwait with organ transplant centers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since 1996, and then with the United Arab Emirates since the end of 2021, and that Instead of burying it because it is not needed.
For his part, Kuwait University Professor and Consultant Surgeon, Dr. Muhammad Jamal, said due to the accusations of a member of the National Assembly about the organ provision program, cooperation between Kuwait and the Gulf countries has stopped, and the last two cases whose organs were donated were the liver, heart, and lungs.
Al-Moussawi said after the widespread interaction and tweets supporting organ transplant operations, the Ministry of Health moved and contacted the UAE Ambassador to continue the cooperation program after a temporary halt “due to the representative’s accusations.”
He added there is a memorandum of understanding regarding cooperation in the field of organ transplantation that was presented by the UAE ambassador to Kuwait to the Minister of Health, and we expect this memorandum to be signed to cover any pretexts.
MP Shuaib Shaaban stressed the necessity of strengthening cooperation between Kuwait and the Gulf countries in organ transplantation and completing the steps that were begun in this regard.
