COFS Continues Efforts to Establish a National Transplantation Law in Egypt - May 2007
Dr. Debra Budiani, Minister Hatem Al-Gabaly, Dr. Francis Delmonico, Dr. Refaat Kamal, and Dr. Nabila Metwalli
Drs. Adel Bakr, Debra Budiani, Francis Delmonico, and Hassan Abol-Enein at Mansoura University Hospital
Drs. Debra Budiani, Francis Delmonico and Hamdy Al-Sayyed at the Egyptian Parliament
Drs. Francis Delmonico, Debra Budiani, and Rashad Barsoum
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In addition to the facilitation of the Egyptian Strategic Group on Organ Transplants (ESGOT) to enhance the transplant legal structure in Egypt, COFS has expanded its efforts with other medical professional leaders who share this aim. In an allied effort with UNOS via its immediate past president, Dr. Francis Delmonico, COFS facilitated Dr. Delmonico's initial visit to Egypt to assess the potential for UNOS' provision of technical assistance in the development of an Egyptian registry for transplants. UNOS is considering providing this assistance upon the request of the Egyptian Society of Nephrology's (ESN) and Roche Pharmaceuticals. UNOS' assistance is also contingent upon the establishment of an appropriate legal framework for transplants- particularly a framework that prevents commercial living donorship and assures national oversight of transplant practices. Dr. Delmonico, a Professor of Surgery at Harvard University, is now the Director of Medical Affairs of the international Transplantation Society and an Advisor of Human Transplantation to the WHO.
This effort was within a context of Egyptian key actors and stakeholders having stepped up efforts in recent months, after decades of grappling to establish a national transplantation law in Egypt. Parliament began to once again facilitate sessions aimed at establishing a law that would regulate transplants and potentially permit deceased donation. The Director of the Medical Syndicate, Dr. Hamdy Al-Sayyed, and leading transplant surgeons have met with Parliamentarians to discuss the components of such a law amidst opposition from several key opponents of deceased donation. The still new Minister of Health, Dr. Hatem Al-Gabaly, has also been instrumental in his support of the proposed legislation.
Accordingly, Dr. Delmonico and COFS' Director, Dr. Debra Budiani, met with Minister Hatem Al-Gabaly and Dr. Hamdy Al- Sayyed as well as with transplant leaders at Mansoura University -Drs. Mohamed Ghoneim, Hassan Abol-Enein and Adel Bakr; Director of the Cairo Kidney Center Dr. Rashad Barsoum, as well as members of ESGOT. Minister Hatem Al-Gabaly demonstrated a commitment to adhere to WHO's Guiding Principles in developing an Egyptian Legal Framework and stated his interest to collaborate with UNOS in the development of the registry.
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