T’puram: Twenty-three-year-old Naomi Vincent, who was declared brain-dead after sustaining critical injuries in a road accident, has given a new lease of life to six patients through organ donation.Naomi, a native of Wadakkanchery, Thrissur, had recently completed her postgraduate degree in Psychology. She was travelling to Thiruvananthapuram to join a new job at a private firm when the accident occurred. The car in which she was travelling collided with a truck near Valakom in Kottarakkara at 4am on Thursday.With the consent of her family, Naomi’s two kidneys, liver, two corneas and heart valve were donated. One kidney was transplanted into a patient at Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, while the other kidney and the liver were allocated to patients undergoing treatment at a private hospital in the city. The heart valve was handed over to Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, while the two corneas were donated to Regional Institute of Ophthalmology (RIO).Kerala Network for Organ Sharing (KNOS/K-SOTTO) coordinated the entire organ retrieval and allocation process. Transplant surgeries are currently under way at the respective hospitals.Her mother, Gypsy Thankachan, and younger brother, Joel Vincent, who was driving the vehicle, also sustained grievous injuries in the accident. All three were initially admitted to a private hospital in Kottarakkara. Naomi was later shifted to Thiruvananthapuram, for advanced treatment, where she was declared brain-dead on Sunday.Following the declaration of brain death, her father Vincent, sister Angel Maria Vincent and other family members consented to organ donation. Her mother and brother are undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Thrissur.Health minister K Muraleedharan paid tribute to Naomi’s family for their decision to donate her organs despite their personal tragedy. The minister expressed his condolences and described the family’s decision as a noble act that would inspire many others.
