CADAVER NEWS

Recently there was a small news in a leading newspaper with caption, “Cops selling Corpses ‘. This news was about allegation faced by one state government. The allegation is that police in this state was selling unclaimed bodies to private medical colleges. The concerned state government has admitted that some bodies were given to private medical colleges without following proper legal procedure. Whether the bodies were sold or not, whether legal procedures were followed or not is a matter of law and politics. The news has certainly thrown up the issue of paucity of dead bodies in medical sciences.

The cadavers (dead body) are required in subject of Anatomy in medical colleges. “In order to understand the disease process one has to understand the normal topography and functions of the body. Altered structures lead to altered functioning, that is diseases. As such it is important for medical students, post graduates and surgeons to keep learning the morphology of the body ‘, says Dr J M Kaul, Director, Professor and Head, Dept of Anatomy, MAMC, Delhi. According to global standards one cadaver is required per set of 4 students. However, in India the ratio is around 30-35 students working on one body. The cadavers are also required in learning various surgical skills, which cannot be demonstrated on live human beings. Medical institutions receives these bodies either as voluntary donations by families of deceased or unclaimed bodies from local police dept. students should ideally be given dead bodies where case history and cause of death is known as is possible in voluntary donations. However, most of the time the students are compelled to work on unclaimed bodies which on many occasions are decomposed with case history not known.   Whole body donation is minuscule in our country. Barely 50 bodies are received by medical institutions across the country annually. The noble act by Jyoti Basu, Nanaji Deshmukh or Vinda Karandikar has shed some light on subject but on the whole the picture remains grim. It is certainly this wide spread gap creating paucity of cadavers, ultimately may be contributing to nurturing growth of illegal trade in human body and organs!

This situation has risen in the India not due to any one particular reason, but it is the attitude of whole society. The society includes common man, experts, law and its enforcers, infrastructure in the country.  According to Dr. Kailash Jawade, President of DOST (Dhanwantry Organisation for Social Transformation) there are many factors responsible for this situation. He states them as lack of awareness. Lack of acceptance, Lack of complete knowledge of these concepts in medical practitioners, Religious and Cultural issues, Fear of humiliation, Lack of motivation, Poor media support, avoidance of responsibility by medical community. Although Rishi Dadhichi belonged to Bharatvarsha, modern day Indian is reluctant to come forth and pledge to donate oneself for the cause of humanity. The medicos in the country, who have had tryst with shortage of cadaver in their academics, too are not so keen to come forth and pave way for would be medicos. Sh. Alok Kumar, President of Dadhichi Dehdan samiti rues, “that out of 1500 registered cadaver donors with the samiti non is medical student “.

The experts who should be giving correct information to lay public at times misguide them. A gentleman had approached a medical institution in Mumbai for donating mortal remains of his relative - who was resident of Delhi but expired in Mumbai.. This gentleman was told by the responsible expert that the donation cannot be accepted as the deceased was not a resident of Mumbai, deceased had not registered himself under Bombay Anatomy Act and that age of deceased being above 80 years, the body cannot be accepted for medical purpose. In reality no such laws exist anywhere in the country. Had it been so, the acceptance of mortal remains of Jyoti Basu, Nanaji Deshmukh and Vinda Karandikar by medical institution itself would have been an illegal action. They all were above 80 years of age.

The legal procedures in India for cadaver donations have been made too cumbersome by some vested interest interpretations. If a person dies at home and his relatives decide to accord traditional funeral, mere death certificate by doctor – which is only a piece of paper is sufficient. However in case it is to be donated for cause of humanity, then the grieving relatives are made to undergo most insensitive, inhuman situation as if they are criminals to the core. To donate a body a No Objection certificate is required from Police dept, which itself involves series of clearances. This was corroborated by Dr Vijay Katti (an academician) who donated the remains of her father- in- law and Dr Medha Joshi (a medical practitioner). Again this procedure is neither uniform nor mandatory across the country. This in spite of universal truth that death does not recognize any political boundaries, sex, religion or any thing. Rather than looking at it as suspicion it is high time that law enforcers should think about it and make it humane

Dr Kaul further says “Anatomy forms the back bone of medical education, especially the surgical disciplines. It is time for basic science to become an integral part of the health care system and equally empower the younger and upcoming anatomists and surgeons into culture of research, handling newer technologies and be aware of socially relevant area like transplantation.” She also asserts that whole body donation is contribution to medico’s career which cannot be bought by by any amount of money.

There are several NGO’s striving to raise awareness in various facets of human body and organ donations.  Dadhichi Deh Dan Samiti is the only NGO in Delhi which coordinates and facilitates the donations. For last couple of decades it has been organizing Utsav annually, where it invites experts and revered people from all walks of life. The speakers give insight into various issues related to such donations. On the occasion the deceased who donated themselves are felicitated posthumously. Samiti has so far facilitated in organizing 51 bodies to medical institutions, more that 300 pairs of eyes and bones of two people.

 Such efforts have to be suitably augmented by relevant contributions from all sections of society.  Otherwise the society itself will be precursor of criminal acts and eventually has to own up the responsibility for rise of illegal bio trade by squandering away precious gifts of nature.