The General Hospital (GH), Ernakulam, in Kerala is all set to conduct its first heart transplant on Monday (December 22, 2025). With the transplant, the Ernakulam GH, will become the first general hospital in India to perform a heart transplant surgery, according to the authorities.
The heart, retrieved from Shibu, a Kollam native who was declared brain dead at Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, will be transplanted to Nepali national Durga Kami, also known as Arpana, who has been seeking medical help in India for close to a year.
An eight-member team of doctors from the GH, comprising Dr. George Valuran, Dr. Paul Thomas and Dr. Geo Paul, had left for Thiruvananthapuram Monday morning to retrieve the heart. “Since several organs are being harvested, this will take some time as the heart is retrieved in the end,” said a source at the hospital.
To be airlifted to Kochi
The organ harvest surgery began at 11 am and is expected to be completed by 1:30 p.m. The heart will be airlifted to Kochi and is expected to arrive after 2:30 p.m. The heart transplant is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.
