How to quickly transport organs for transplantation by Air: Dr P.K.Verma

Organ transplantation is a surgical procedure in which tissue or an organ is transferred from one area of a person's body to another area, or from one person (the donor) to another person (the recipient).

Just before removal from the donor, the organ is thoroughly flushed free of blood with a specially prepared ice-cold preservation solution which contains electrolytes and nutrients. The organ is then carefully removed from donor’s body (harvested) and placed in sterile container, packaged in wet ice, and transported to the recipient’s transplant centre/hospital.

It may be noted that once organs are taken out from donor, they will only remain healthy only for a short period of time, hence every minute counts. The transportation of harvested organ from donor’s centre to recipient’s transplant centre should be done within shortest possible time, usually by flight. Thus certain precautions are mandatory to save time:

Suggested precautions for transportation of organ through flight:

1. The Harvesting Medical Team should travel light, must not carry heavy luggage/suitcases for which they would have to wait at belt area for luggage retrieval. However, in case the team is carrying luggage (instruments etc), one person from the team should be identified to stay back at the airport, collect the luggage from the Belt and then proceed to parent hospital.

2. In the return flight, the Harvesting Medical Team, carrying the organ, should be seated together, near the exit gate.

3. Before landing, the flight crew should announce to all the passengers to keep seated till the Harvesting Medical Team has exited the aircraft.

The Process:

1. A qualified and competent Medical Team is sent to donor’s place/hospital to harvest the organ.

2. The Medical Team boards the aircraft at Donors place and arrives at the airport at recipient’s place.

3. The Medical Team leaves the airport to reach the recipient’s transplant centre/hospital.

It is logical to assume that the medical team/airport operator/CISF (Security Agency) and concerned airline stationed at the arrival airport will facilitate the process of formalities at the airport so that there is no delay at the airport by mutual coordination of various agencies involved:

1. Airport Operator

2. Airport Security Agency/CISF

3. Concerned Airlines

4. Traffic Police for provision of Green corridor from airport to hospital.

Action:

1. Inform the above agencies beforehand about arriving of organ with flight number, date & time of landing of aircraft, terminal/Bay number where aircraft will dock. 2. There should be two ambulances, to be on safe side.

3. The ambulances should reach the airport at least one hour before ETA of aircraft bringing the organ. There have been instances where the aircraft, getting the tail-wind, have reached 20 to 30 minutes earlier.

4. Advise the concerned airlines to inform the flight crew of the aircraft bringing the organ that:

a. The medical team should be allowed to exit the aircraft first. Rest of the passengers should wait, seating, till the harvesting team has exited the aircraft.

b. The harvesting team should board the ambulances (in case ambulances have reached the aircraft on tarmac) or bus before any other passenger.

c. The bus should immediately leave with medical team only, carrying the organ, to arrive at the Arrival Bussing Gate from where the airport medical team will escort them along with CISF and Terminal Management to stationed ambulances at arrival.

5. In case the aircraft is docking at aerobridge (for passengers to exit into terminal building), ascertain the distance from docking bay to arrival lounge. If it is too long and will take more time, advise the flight crew to open the rear door of aircraft for exit of the harvesting team directly on to tarmac/runway through slider ramp or ladder where ambulances should be waiting.

6. Advise the traffic police that ambulances are on their way.

7. Inform the parent hospital that ambulances are on their way.

Ascertain the distance from arrival bay to exit of the airport and time taken for arrival team to reach the waiting ambulances.

1.Upon arrival, Harvesting Team is taken to Bussing Gate by bus, crosses the terminal building and boards the ambulances waiting and ready on road opposite arrival lounge.

Or

2. Ambulances enter the airside through steel gate, park and wait adjacent to docking area of the arriving aircraft, collects the harvesting team, exit through steel gate and move towards parent hospital on green corridor. The Harvesting team should exit before other passenger through front or rear exit gate of the aircraft.

If

3. Arriving aircraft docks on aerobridge:

a. Distance between docking bay and ambulance on road opposite arrival lounge is small and will take only2-3 minutes on foot.

b. Distance between docking bay and ambulance on road opposite arrival is long and will take more than 10-15 minutes on foot. Advise the flight crew to open the rear exit door to exit the harvesting team on tarmac where ambulances are stationed.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are of the author and not of Medical Dialogues. The Editorial/Content team of Medical Dialogues has not contributed to the writing/editing/packaging of this article.