Keywords
Citation
(2011), "Oman - Ministry of Health sets up panel for liver transplants", International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 24 No. 7. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijhcqa.2011.06224gaa.010
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2011, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Oman - Ministry of Health sets up panel for liver transplants
Article Type: News and views From: International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Volume 24, Issue 7
Keywords: Hepatic disease, Specialised medical services, Liver transplant
Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Obaid al Saeedi, Minister of Health (MoH), recently issued a ministerial decision to form a national technical committee for liver transplants. The committee will finalise regulations on sending patients of hepatic disease abroad for treatment and conduct studies to establish a national centre for liver transplants in the sultanate in the near future.
The committee is headed by Lt Col Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed al Kindi, Senior Consultant of liver surgery in the Armed Forces Hospital (AFH). Its members include liver specialists from hospitals of the Ministry of Health (MoH), Sultan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH) and AFH.
Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed al Kindi, Senior Consultant of liver surgery in AFH, has stated that the committee was set up to study and evaluate requests from patients of hepatic diseases to seek treatment outside the country.
The committee takes a decision after fully assessing the severity of the case and reviewing medical results. Dr Kindi said, “One of our main goals is to conduct a study on the possibility of establishing the national centre for liver transplants to provide specialised medical services in the country.
“The committee will visit countries such as Saudi Arabia to benefit from their experiences in this field. Of course, we have the human resources in the sultanate to set up the centre, but we don’t have the infrastructure needed for this project yet.”
On the liver transplant procedure, Dr Kindi said, “Liver transplantation is one of the most complicated surgeries in the medical field, and there are certain regulations that govern it. The liver donor should be over 18 years old, and be willing to donate on his own without any pressure from others. It’s better if the blood types of the donor and the receiver match”.
Dr Kindi said a lack of donors is one of the main difficulties that the medical fraternity faces. “Sometimes, the patient’s body rejects the transplanted organ, which forces us to look for another donor.”
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