NEW DELHI, July 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
Dr. Namrata Sharma, an additional professor at AIIMS, was pleasantly surprised to see that one of her juniors, who had chosen the offbeat path of working for a spiritual organisation, was now heading an eye bank that was amongst the top three in the country. Likewise, another senior faculty member at AIIMS, Professor Pradeep Sharma was amazed to discover that his former student had partnered in a major medical breakthrough in the field of ophthalmology in India. Indeed, as a part of an international consortium, a group of medical professionals have devised a novel way of transporting the eye tissue required for cornea transplant operations without the use of cold chain, which includes Dr. Aditya Insaan, an AIIMS trained ophthalmologist.
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He along with other doctors at the Shah Satnam Ji Speciality Hospital run under the aegis of Dera Sacha Sauda - Sirsa, collaborated with Yamanashi and Waseda University of Japan through the Nichi-In Centre for Regenerative Medicine at Chennai, in conducting research on effective transport and utilisation of the eye tissue in a bid to reduce the wastage. And the tie-up happened because the Shah Satnam Ji Speciality Hospital had surplus tissue. That is the longer story.
"The corneal tissue is the most vital for almost all eye transplant related operations and yet it is the toughest to get. Our Guruji, Saint Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Ji Insan, has inspired more eye donations compared to any other individual motivator in the whole world," said Dr. Aditya Insan, Dera Sacha Sauda's spokesman and the head of the Cornea program.
Reminiscing the days, when the Dera's rural hospital at Sri Gurusar Modia in Rajasthan did not even have the luxury of a telephone, the doctor gets choked when narrating the difficult road they took. "There was a time when there was no telephone and no corneal preservation media, only the constant encouragement from Guruji goaded us. And today, when I receive calls from my alma mater AIIMS, telling me that we have arrived on the national scene, it is undoubtedly humbling," says Dr. Insan.
Speaking further, Dr. Insan added, "Also 60 per cent of the tissue is wasted or underutilised. Guruji has insisted that we undertake novel research so now we are working on the method of effectively utilising that waste tissue for treatment of near sightedness and keratoconus (a condition where the eye cornea gets deformed). If our research is successful it will help the eye banks and patients across India, especially in places where there is a dearth of eye donors."
Effectively, he points out that if the discovery of non-cold chain preservation and transport was mated to newer techniques for utilisation of waste tissue, it would have tremendous benefits for countless patients. Dr. Namrata Sharma from AIIMS, also rues the high cornea wastage in eye banks despite a huge backlog of needy patients.
Shah Satnam Ji Speciality Hospital that houses the Poojaneeya Mata Kartar Kaur Ji International Eye Bank is one of the finest eye banks in India. It depends almost exclusively on Dera Sacha Sauda follower's, motivated by Guruji. Till date, 9421 pair of eyes have been donated here, of which nearly 3000 have been effectively transplanted.
In India the number of eye donors is sparse. In a year only 40,000 eyes are donated and of that, a figure five per cent comes from the devotees at Dera Sacha Sauda and that is an achievement in itself. Besides, the number of donors from Dera Sacha Sauda is steadily rising under the guidance of Guruji.
"Guruji says that eye donation is the biggest donation of all. And since our body without soul is nothing but ashes and dust, it would be better if we donate our eyes. It is a righteous thing to do," added Dr. Insan.
Dera Sacha Sauda has taken it on itself to remove blindness from the face of the earth. And for the purpose 1,17,813 individuals at Dera Sacha Sauda have vowed to donate their eyes after they are gone.
Recalling the time when he joined the Dera Sacha Sauda, Dr. Insan said, "It was in 1997 that I joined the hospital and I still remember when I did, my seniors had said that I was committing hara-kiri with regards to my career, but look where we are today. I do know in terms of a single motivator driven eye bank, we are the largest in the world, thanks to Guruji."
Quoting from one of Guruji's speeches, Dr. Insan added, "Just being called a human being is not enough, unless your life is full of deeds of humanitarianism. Even animals and birds live for self preservation, but God has created man as the supreme creation to fulfil the supremacy of purpose by being of service to society and nature."
"Guruji insists that not just eye, but the man should donate his entire body, for it is of little use post death. Also Guruji has been insisting on regular blood donation since as far as I can recall," added Dr. Insan.
And in keeping with Guruji's initiatives, the medical team for enucleation comprises of volunteer doctors. After retrieval of the tissues by trained and qualified personnel, the eyes are taken to the Poojaneeya Mata Kartar Kaur Ji International Eye Bank at Sirsa.
There is an emphasis on cost effectiveness while maintaining the highest standards. Stating how simple innovations can do wonders, Dr. Insan said, "Often we would leave sterilised film roll containers at eye donation centres for storing the donated corneas."
In terms of numbers, doctors at the Shah Satnam Ji Speciality Hospital perform up to seven corneal transplants in a single day. Dera Sacha Sauda has notched up four Guinness World Records for blood donation, adding upto a whopping four lac litres of blood. These apart 65000 pledges for live unrelated kidney donations have already been registered at the hospital.
The treatments at the Shah Satnam Ji Speciality Hospital are dirt cheap and that holds good for cornea transplants as well. In New Delhi the charges for cornea transplant operations range from Rs. 30,000 to a whopping Rs. 1 lakh, while in Chennai the figures are Rs 20,000 to Rs 80,000. In Mumbai and Kolkata the starting rates for the cornea transplant operations range from Rs 30,000 to Rs 35,000, while in Hyderabad the figure stands at Rs 70,000. Even though these hospitals charge a hefty sum, the tragedy is most of these hospitals find it difficult to replenish their eye bank as there are no donors in big cities.
Unlike the rest, the Shah Satnam Ji Speciality Hospital only charges Rs. 6000 for the cornea transplant operation, not to speak of the fact that the poor and the needy are not charged any fee.
About Dera Sacha Sauda:
Dera Sacha Sauda is a social welfare and spiritual organization that preaches and practices humanitarianism and selfless services to others. The main centre of the ashram is located in Sirsa (northern India). More than 50 million people around the world are faithful followers of the organization. Dera's devotees learn to meditate and follow the principles laid down by Dera. His Holiness Beparawah Mastana Ji Maharaj founded Dera Sacha Sauda on April 29th, 1948 to encourage spiritual awakening among the masses, to uplift humanity, and to create a better world. Saint Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Ji Insan is the third and the current master of the Dera. People from all walks of life are welcome in the Dera, irrespective of their religion or race or nationality. Dera Sacha Sauda is well known for its humanitarian work and for being a confluence of all religions.
For more information, visit www.derasachasauda.org
Media Contact: Anuj Sharma, +91-9811450025, PR Manager
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