Caribbean360: Two few organ donors in Trinidad & Tobago

Two few organ donors in Trinidad & Tobago
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Chris Hoyos on 09/03/2012 08:55:00
 
PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad, Friday March 9, 2012 – Trinidadian officials are
making a call for deceased kidney donors to ensure that there is an adequate
supply of kidneys for those dependent on dialysis.
This call is coming from the country’s Ministry of Health who is urging
nationals to contact the National Organ Transplant Unit and become an organ
donor. To date 300 people registered since its launch on March 2007.
The theme for this year’s World Kidney Day celebrated yesterday was Donate –
Kidneys for Life – Receive, and health authorities urged nationals to get
involved in organ donation and save a life.
As of December 2011, there were 699 people in the twin-island state receiving
dialysis treatment at both private and public health care facilities.
But, the number of organ donors needed to take patients off dialysis is not
enough as only 83 kidney transplants were done in the last six years, of which
only three were from a deceased donor.
Health authorities explained that a live donor could only help one person, while
a deceased person could help at least two people at one time.
However, there are concerns as Trinidad and Tobago reports that more than half
of its population (55.5 per cent) 15 years and older are overweight or obese,
while 25 per cent of school children between the ages of five and 18 are
overweight or obese.
In addition over 40 per cent of the country’s population do not exercise
regularly, and a whopping 90.8 per cent eat less than the recommended five
servings of fruit and vegetables daily. Click here to receive free news
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