The Union Health Ministry has directed hospitals performing kidney transplants across India to publicly disclose their transplant success rates, patient survival figures, graft failure rates, mortality data and other long-term outcomes in a major move aimed at improving transparency and helping patients make informed healthcare decisions. The directive has been issued by the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) to all States and Union Territories asking them to ensure that registered transplant hospitals prominently display post-transplant outcome data on the homepage of their websites in a prescribed format. Hospitals have also been instructed to regularly upload complete and timely transplant and follow-up data to the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Registry.
The initiative follows concerns raised by BJP MP Captain Brijesh Chowta who highlighted the absence of publicly available information on transplant outcomes. In his representation to Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda, Chowta called for greater transparency, mandatory publication of long-term survival statistics and stronger informed consent protocols to help patients compare hospitals before undergoing kidney transplantation.
According to NOTTO Director Dr. Anil Kumar, the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Registry already captures donor, recipient, follow-up and outcome data from transplant centres across the country. More than 800 registered transplant hospitals are linked to the registry and are required to submit transplant-related information through designated online portals. The latest directive seeks to ensure that these data are complete, regularly updated and made accessible to the public.
Besides publishing outcome statistics hospitals have been instructed to strengthen informed consent procedures by ensuring that patients and their families receive comprehensive information about transplant procedures, potential risks, expected outcomes and long-term follow-up before surgery. The government believes that greater disclosure will enable patients to make better-informed choices while encouraging hospitals to maintain high standards of quality and accountability.
Health experts have welcomed the move noting that patients have traditionally selected transplant centres with little information about their long-term performance. Making survival rates, graft failure statistics and mortality data publicly available is expected to improve public confidence in the organ transplantation system while promoting evidence-based decision-making and continuous quality improvement among transplant centres.
The directive is part of the government’s broader efforts to strengthen India’s organ transplantation ecosystem through improved reporting, enhanced monitoring, and greater transparency, ultimately aiming to improve patient outcomes and reinforce trust in the country’s transplant programme.
