More and more Jordanians open to organ donation

AMMAN — Organ donation is gaining widespread acceptance among Jordanians, with over 70,000 individuals already registered to donate all their organs after death, according to officials.

Eyad Khaled, received a life-changing gift when his mother donated one of her kidneys to him when he was only 16 years old.

“My situation seemed hopeless; I spent most of my childhood in hospitals,” Eyad told The Jordan Times.

Eyad was born prematurely with three kidneys, but only 10 per cent of one kidney was functional, while the other two did not work at all.

“In addition to kidney failure, I faced various other health problems… leading me to undergo more than 30 surgeries throughout my life,” said Eyad.

“I didn’t get to experience a normal childhood. I had to wear diapers at school,” he added.

Eyad expressed that his parents felt desperate as neither his father nor his two siblings were a match for his kidney type. “When I turned out to be a match with my mother, my transplant was immediately scheduled,” he said.

“I gave my son the most precious gift I could ever offer — a chance to have a normal, healthy life,” Umm Eyad told The Jordan Times.  

 Umm Eyad added that she signed up for full organ donation post-death, which includes her liver, corneas, other kidney and lungs. 

“Through organ donation, I found purpose in giving life and hope to my own flesh and blood to five more patients and their families, which could be the best gift that anyone could receive,” said Umm Eyad.

“The transplant was life-changing. I could finally live my life normally, something I never thought would be possible,” Eyad added.

Ahmad Shaker, deputy chairman of the National Campaign to Encourage Organ Donation, told The Jordan Times that organ donation is becoming increasingly accepted among Jordanians.

“Currently, there are over 70,000 organ donors in Jordan,” Shaker said.

He added that there are 5,000 cornea donors in Jordan, and that 200-250 kidney transplants take place annually in Jordan.

In Shaker’s opinion, donating organs after brain death is one of the best things a human can do.

“We are calling for a national centre to oversee the organ donation process from A to Z,” Shaker added.

He emphasised that the centre must maintain national records of donors and patients as well as histological matches. “The centre should have the authority and resources to extract organs within four-six hours of death,” said Shaker.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health has launched an electronic platform (https://mohapp.moh.gov.jo/odcapp/#/user) for registering those interested in organ donation after death.