Uhuru orders creation of new tissue, organ transplant authority
President Uhuru Kenyatta during the official opening of Kenyatta National Hospital's Zarina Merali Daycare Center; Centre for Kidney Diseases & Organ Transplantation on May 11, 2022.
What you need to know:
- The Kenya Tissue and Transplant Authority will succeed the department of the National Blood Transfusion, Tissue and Human Organ Transplant Services.
- The objective is to ensure access to the safe and ethical use of human cells, tissues and organs and the safety, biosafety and wellbeing of donors and recipients.
Kenyans can now breathe a sigh of relief after President Uhuru Kenyatta okayed the birth of a new authority mandated to oversee tissue and organ transplants in the country.
In a Gazette Notice sent to the Nation, the President explained that the Kenya Tissue and Transplant Authority will succeed the department of the National Blood Transfusion, Tissue and Human Organ Transplant Services existing at the Ministry of Health (MoH) at the commencement of his order.
The objective is to ensure access to the safe and ethical use of human cells, tissues and organs and the safety, biosafety and wellbeing of donors and recipients in medical services relating to human-derived medical products through the establishment and maintenance of systems that comply with safety and legal requirements.
This comes after the lack of clarity, official health ministry data and a set of rules for organ transplantation in the only reference point which is the Health Act of 2017 which allows people to donate their organs for research and to other persons.
The authority which will be in office for three years on a renewable contract will have a board of directors who "shall be selected through conventional board resourcing procedures including through applications, referrals and knowledge of the market and industry actors."
“The Kenya Tissue and Transplant Authority shall maintain a registry of transplant service providers, donors and recipients and establish an equitable mechanism for matching and allocation of cells, tissue and organs,” President Kenyatta said while also highlighting that the authority shall also mobilise, educate and sensitise members of the public to foster voluntary donations of cells, tissues and organs.
Inspection mandate
“It will inspect hospitals periodically for examination of the quality of transplantation and the follow-up medical care to persons who have undergone transplantation and persons from whom organs are removed.”
The authority has further been given the power to enter, search and inspect any place suspected of indulging in unauthorised removal, procurement or transplantation of human cells, organs or tissues.
In a recent interview with the Nation, Dr Nduku Kilonzo who is the director of the Kenya National Blood Transfusion Services and Human Organs Transplantation disclosed that a task force working with MoH was working on the regulations and ethical considerations that are likely to arise.
Read: New law for organ donation to ease transplant pain
“We have been working on a support framework on organ transplantation and we are looking to see to it that the Universal Health Coverage will have benefits and packages on transfusion and organ transplantation,” he said while explaining that there is an array of organs that can be transplanted like the liver, kidney, heart, cornea and even skin but Kenya is not fully equipped to conduct some of these transplants.
In May this year, President Kenyatta inaugurated Sh1 billion state-of-the-art health facilities at the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) which included the Zarina Merali Surgical Daycare Centre, the Centre for Kidney Disease & Organ Transplantation and Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics Laboratory which was jointly funded by the government of Kenya and Zarina Merali Foundation.
In an official response to queries fielded by the Nation, Health CS Mutahi Kagwe lauded President Kenyatta for his efforts toward reforming the country’s healthcare system.
“The President is so passionate about making health affordable to everyone and this has been his top priority as enshrined in the Big Four Agenda that explains his desire to make Universal Health Coverage a success in the country," Kagwe said.
"This authority is a huge step and will help millions of Kenyans who have been suffering due to the lack of a national well-coordinated transplants and organ donation structure as well as blood transfusion services."
Kagwe told the Nation that more needs to be done in terms of training and implementation so as to ensure the new authority runs smoothly and is well coordinated to sub-county level and grassroots.
