Guangdong opened its seventh Organ Procurement Organization (OPO) in Shenzhen recently, expanding the coverage of the OPO service from several eastern districts to the whole city.
After opening, the first organ donation case was conducted in Shenzhen No. 3 People’s Hospital on Dec. 1, Southern Metropolis Daily reported.
The family of a girl in Shenzhen who died in a traffic accident donated her heart, liver, both kidneys and both corneas, which can save four lives and help two patients regain their sight, according to the report.
Shenzhen No. 3 People’s Hospital and Fuwai Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Shenzhen are responsible for operating the organization.
Shenzhen No. 3 People’s Hospital became the only hospital in the city to earn qualifications for kidney and liver transplantation in 2017. But the hospital had to work with six other hospitals in Guangzhou to share organs donated in Shenzhen. Additionally, the hospital could only provide the OPO service in the districts of Longgang, Yantian and Pingshan and Dapeng New Area.
There are about 300,000 patients with organ failure in China who need transplants every year, but just over 10,000 transplants are performed every year.
OPOs are responsible for the procurement of organs for transplantation. Their specific tasks include giving medical evaluations to potential organ donors, requesting consent from the families of donors, procuring organs and ensuring that organs are appropriately transferred to transplant hospitals.