KASKI, JUNE 24

Paschimanchal Regional Hospital under Pokhara Academy of Health Sciences has successfully conducted kidney transplantation for the first time.

The kidney transplantation was conducted on a 53-year-old woman from Annapurna Rural Municipality in the district yesterday.

She was donated the organ by her husband.

It took four hours for a team of specialist doctors to transplant the kidney. The hospital has, however, maintained the names of the organ donor and recipient anonymous.

Executive Director at PAHS Prof Dr Bharat Bahadur Khatri shared the happiness that kidney transplantation was conducted successfully with the cooperation of Martyr Dharmabhakta National Transplantation Centre, Bhaktapur, and the Academy.

Centre's Dr Pukar Chandra Shrestha and PAHS' Dr Prakash Chhetri, Dr Anup Chapagain, Dr Maya Lama, Dr Juju Shrestha and Dr Amrit KC were involved in the organ transplantation.

Earlier, the kidney patients from Pokhara and Gandaki Province had to visit federal capital, Kathmandu, for the transplantation.

PAHS had got permission from Human Organ Transplantation Coordination Secretariat under the Health Service Department on June 17, according to Information Officer Suman Bhattarai.

PAHS had made agreement with Martyr Dharmabhakta National Transplantation Centre to provide necessary human resources to conduct the transplantation.

The hospital has said the transplantation was done free of cost. The hospital is planning expand transplantation.

It is said there are around 500 kidney patients receiving dialyses service every day in Pokhara.

A version of this article appears in the print on June 25, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.