Over 26,000 Ghanaians in need of cornea transplant risk losing their vision due to the absence of a law to back the harvesting of tissues locally.
Drafted last year, the Human Organ and Tissue Bill to allow for organ and tissue donation, as well as transplantation in the country is yet to be passed into law.
The law is expected to be a game changer in Ghana’s healthcare delivery, seeking among others to not only create a national authority to oversee and regulate organ-tissue donation and transplantation, but protect the rights and interests of donors, recipients and their families while ensuring ethical and legal standards around such procedures to meet the growing demand in the country.
At a stakeholders’ summit organised by non-profit organisation, HCP Cureblindness, in partnership with the Ophthalmological Society of Ghana (OSG) to push for the immediate passage of the bill, the Presidential Advisor on Health, Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, said that law was crucial to promote eye health in Ghana.
He said of the 250,000 visually impaired population in the country, 11 per cent were attributed to cornea defects, describing the condition as a “silent epidemic”.
“The cornea plays a crucial role in vision, unfortunately, diseases, injuries and infections can damage this delicate tissue leading to irreversible blindness,” he stated.
Dr Nsiah-Asare noted that the lack of public awareness on corneal transplantation, insufficient donor pool and inadequate infrastructure to easily facilitate the process remained a challenge.
While affirming the government’s commitment to the law, which he disclosed was being developed into a policy by the Ministry of Health and thence to Cabinet and the Attorney General’s office, the Presidential Advisor expressed the need for increased public sensitisation, collaboration, training and infrastructural development to ensure the law achieved its intended purpose.
“Corneal transplantation is not just a medical procedure. It offers a priceless gift of sight allowing individuals to see their loved ones, appreciate the beauty of life and contribute actively to society,” he stated.
The Head of Eye Care at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Hornametor Afake, said cornea disease often affected young people among the population, indicating that it was not merely a medical problem but a socio-economic one.
He said, at present, corneal surgeons are dependent on sourcing tissues from abroad which is both costly and time-consuming, adding; “passing the bill will help establish eye banks and provide for fair and much-needed transplantation services to help restore sight to thousands.”
For his part, the Country Director for HCP Cureblindness, Dr James Addy, in a remark, said with the absence of a law to legalise organ donation, “majority of Ghanaians who are corneal blind will never see again.”
He said with the Human Organ and Tissue Bill in place, it would help facilitate other medical procedures such as kidney transplantation and organ donations to end the referral of patients to foreign countries or await importation of organs and tissues for the action.
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH