30 Mar 2021

Assistant Minister of Health and Wellness, Mr Sethomo Lelatisitswe says 18 clients have been awaiting organ transplant since 2020. 

Mr Lelatisistwe said six clients were waiting for kidney transplant, three for liver and nine for bone marrow transplant.

Answering a question in Parliament on Monday, he said the patients were due to go to India for transplants in 2020, but the trips were postponed due to COVID-19 travel restrictions and the need to prevent exposure to infection.

Mr Lelatisitswe said the law relating to the organ bank was in operation, adding that provisions for organ transplant services were available in the Public Health Act of 2013, which commenced operation in 2014. 

 “In line with the Act, my ministry currently implements the Botswana Organ Transplant Policy, which was approved in 2014.  

The policy’s aim is to create an enabling environment for organ replacement services. 

The mid-term review of this policy, which would have been conducted starting from April to September 2020 was delayed due to resource prioritisation during the current COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mr Lelatisitswe.

Through the policy, the ministry seeks to facilitate end organ transplants, as well as the care of patients with organ damage, he said, adding that the scope of the policy included accessing services in Botswana, or in other countries.  

“Through this, an agreement has been established with Apollo Hospitals in India and based on this arrangement, Botswana government has since September 2015 facilitated 32 kidney, five liver and 20 bone marrow transplants,” he said.  

As more private hospitals were being licensed in Botswana, Mr Lelatisistwe said organ transplants, which were a form of tertiary prevention for services of end organ damage would become more feasible in Botswana. 

In respect to subsidies, and as far as the government’s responsibilities go, he said all qualifying patients had received financial support. Currently, he said organ transplants were offered at full cost to government. 

He said private health facilities also made referrals to other countries, through out-of-pocket financing and medical insurance schemes.

“It is important, however, to note that services obtained without government referrals, or control, will remain the responsibility of the financial sponsors,” said Mr Lelatisitswe. 

Mr Lelatisitswe was responding to a question from Palapye MP, Mr Onneetse Ramogapi, who had asked the Minister of Health and Wellness to appraise Parliament on organ bank law and further state when the law would commence and be operational.

Mr Ramogapi also asked why kidney, eye and heart related patients could not be subsidised to purchase and transplant organs elsewhere, and the number of patients in need of different organs in Botswana and why government was unable to assist them. Ends