Ethiopia: Turkish experts give transplant presentation

By Yesim Sert Karaaslan

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AA) - A Turkish delegation on Thursday gave presentations on organ transplantation and intensive care to Ethiopian officials as part of a project, International Transplant Network (ITN).

In the instructional program held in capital Addis Ababa, several Turkish doctors and officials shared their vocational experience and country’s legal regulations with their counterparts, urging Ethiopia to raise efforts in the transplantation field.

Gamze Yildirim, a member of the board of directors of the Turkish Transplant Foundation (TTF), said: "Under the International Transplant Network project, 1,669 people from 78 countries have been trained so far".

Turkey’s health personnel, including transplant coordinators, intensive care nurses and experts operating in the field abroad, participated in the training activities, she added.

Deniz Heppekcan, another board member of the TTF, said Ethiopia did not conduct deceased donor transplants, and added that this trend should change to save lives in the country.

"For a country to meet its transplant needs, raising number of transplants from a deceased donor is the only solution," she said, calling on Ethiopian health authorities to play an active role in changing this policy.

Presentations of Turkish scientists and doctors also covered topics such as nutrition in intensive care, sepsis (severe blood poisoning) as well as stem cell, liver, and kidney transplantations.

Turkey's ITN is a civic initiative which is actively engaged in different aspects and branches of organ donation and transplantation. It holds workshops on health-themed topics with the participation of many foreign representations.

The initiative has so far held study visits to Mozambique, Georgia, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Malaysia, Senegal and Ethiopia.

* Writing by Ali Murat Alhas