State organ transplant centre shifts from Gandhi Hospital to TIMS
HYDERABAD: The Telangana government has decided to shift the proposed State Organ Transplant Centre from Gandhi Hospital to the Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMS) at Sanathnagar.
More space, global-standard facilities at TIMS
The transplant centre building at TIMS has already been completed and is ready for inauguration. The decision was taken as the Sanathnagar facility offers larger space and better scope for developing international-standard infrastructure, sources said. Health minister Damodar Rajanarasimha is learnt to have taken the call after reviewing the facilities available at TIMS.
The State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (SOTTO), popularly known as Jeevandan, which is currently functioning from Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences, will also be shifted to TIMS. An official government order on the relocation is expected shortly.
The minister had recently stated that a state-of-the-art transplant centre was being set up at TIMS. It is now learnt that the centre originally planned for Gandhi Hospital will be moved to the Sanathnagar campus.
Gandhi modular OTs to remain; equipment to be shifted
Six advanced modular operation theatres constructed at Gandhi Hospital for transplant surgeries will now be used for general surgery and other hospital requirements. Equipment has already been installed in these theatres.
However, several high-end machines that are yet to be installed including heart-lung machines, ECMO units, C-arms, anaesthesia workstations, high-end ventilators and CRRT machines are still packed in boxes. These costly machines will be shifted to TIMS.
Officials said TIMS has a higher number of operation theatres compared to Gandhi Hospital, and the facilities are more spacious. The government believes that relocating the transplant centre to TIMS will also cater to future expansion needs.
Four-year delay in Gandhi OTs
The six operation theatres built at Gandhi Hospital for transplant services have not been made operational even after four years. Despite the transplant centre infrastructure and some equipment being ready for over a year, the facility remained non-functional due to coordination issues between the medical corporation and hospital authorities.
The delay was further compounded after soil tests for a dedicated patient lift failed, forcing officials to identify an alternative location. The lift issue has kept the project pending for nearly a year.
Responding to the delay, Gandhi Hospital authorities said the operation theatres would be made operational soon. They said quotations had already been called for the lift, and minor issues related to oxygen pipelines were being addressed.
