The Corneal Transplant Authority and Tripoli Eye Hospital team expressed their regret for not being able to perform corneal transplant surgeries at Tobruk Medical Center, after being refused admission. The team explained that they had made all the necessary preparations and arrangements, and had coordinated with the center in advance, but were surprised by the refusal to receive them.
The team apologized to the people of Tobruk, stressing their keenness to provide medical service to them in any possible way. They announced the allocation of a hotline through which the hospital can be contacted at any time, so that patients can be received at Tripoli Eye Hospital and undergo the necessary operations.
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Tobruk Medical Center Responds to the Statement
Tobruk Medical Center explained that the refusal to receive the medical team was due to technical and administrative reasons. It pointed out that it is a government agency subject to the laws and regulations of the Ministry of Health, and that it requested the medical team to provide data on the corneas to be transplanted and the CV of the visiting doctor, as the center is the host entity.
The center added that it received the documents from the team, and in turn sent them to the Ministry of Health in Benghazi, where they were rejected by the medical affairs department of the ministry, based on the report of the head of the National Committee for the Localization of Treatment of Eye Diseases.
The center stressed that although the ophthalmology department was under maintenance during that period, it prepared private rooms to receive cases, and prepared a list of their names, but the rejection came for technical reasons.
Ministry of Health Explains Reasons for Rejection
The Ministry of Health explained that the data of the cornea shipment that was planned to be used for the operations were from an unaccredited source in the US, which is the Corneagen Seattle Bank.
The ministry also indicated that the CV of the doctors involved in performing the operations revealed that the mentioned doctor is a consultant in ophthalmology and eye surgery, but does not belong to the teaching staff of any university in Egypt, and is presented as a consultant for corneal transplantation and retinal transplantation, which is contrary to the sub-specialties of ophthalmology and eye surgery.
Director of Benghazi Eye Hospital Explains Additional Reasons
The director of Benghazi Educational Eye Hospital explained that the imported corneas were from an unaccredited bank by the American Eye Bank Association, which does not guarantee the safety of the attached reports, due to the inability to track these banks and verify the validity of the corneas.
He added that most neighboring countries and Arab countries prevent the import of corneas unless they are accredited by this association, stressing that the hospital cannot guarantee their compliance with standards or the credibility of the attached reports.
