Gender Disparity in Organ Donation in India

Syllabus: GS1/ Society, GS2/ Health

Context

• The National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) has issued a 10-point advisory stating that women patients and relatives of deceased donors awaiting organ transplants will get priority as beneficiaries.

Status of Organ Donation

• Organ Transplantation/ Donation is a surgical procedure in which an organ/s, tissue or a group of cells are removed from one person and surgically transplanted into another person.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that over 1,30,000 solid organ transplants are performed each year globally, but this meets only about 10% of the worldwide need.
• An article titled ‘India’s organ transplant paradox: women donate the most and receive the least’’ noted that as per data released by NOTTO, 63.8% of all living organ donors from 2019 to 2023 were women.
  • Yet men received the most donated organs, accounting for 69.8% of the recipients. 

Why is there Gender Disparity in Organ Donation?

• Patriarchal Social Norms: In many families, women are socially conditioned to be caregivers and are expected to “sacrifice” for the well-being of others.
• Economic Factors: Men are usually regarded as the primary breadwinners. Families hesitate to risk their earning capacity by allowing them to undergo organ donation.
• Neglect of Women’s Health: Male patients are more frequently prioritized for receiving transplants, while female patients remain underrepresented as recipients.

Key Points in NOTTO Advisory

• Strengthening National Registry: All hospitals and centres involved in organ/tissue transplantation or retrieval must provide data to the National Registry maintained by NOTTO.
• Prioritize Donor Families in Need: Grant priority in organ allocation to near relatives of deceased donors who are also awaiting an organ transplant.
• Address Gender Disparity: Provide additional points in the organ allocation criteria for women on the waiting list to counter gender imbalances in transplant recipients.
• Permanent Posts for Transplant Coordinators: State governments have been asked to create permanent posts for transplant coordinators in all hospitals performing organ transplantation or retrieval.
  • Coordinators play a critical role in counseling donor families, managing documentation, and facilitating smooth transplantation processes.

India’s Law Related to Organ Donation

• Transplantation of Human Organs Act 1994: It is aimed at regulation of removal, storage and transplantation of human organs for therapeutic purposes and for prevention of commercial dealings in human organs.
  • It allows living donations, in most cases, from close relatives such as parents, siblings, children, spouse, grandparents, grandchildren. 
  • Altruistic donations from distant relatives, in-laws, or long-time friends are allowed after additional scrutiny to ensure there is no financial exchange.
  • For donations from unrelated persons, documents and photographic evidence showing their long-term association or friendship have to be submitted along with all other documents. 
• The Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues (THOT) Rules, 2014, are a set of rules in India that provide specific guidelines and safeguards under the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, to prevent organ trading and trafficking, promote cadaver donation, and facilitate ethical organ transplantation.

Source: TH