Blood donations take a hit, docs urge people to step up
New Delhi: Shortage of blood for non-COVID-19 patients is an upcoming challenge that healthcare workers are facing in hospitals and clinics across Delhi and the country. Many health experts have pointed out that patients with blood-related illnesses such as thalassemia are facing a crisis, and can attribute to a major scarcity in the nearing time.
Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that causes hemoglobin deficit in the body. For patients suffering from this disorder, patients need regular blood transfusions. However, many are unable to access it due to people's hesitance to donate blood and lockdown restrictions.
Speaking to Millennium Post, Kiran Verma, who started a blood donation platform called, Simply Blood through which blood is provided to those in need, said that before the pandemic, there was a deficit of 33 per cent in blood donation, all over the country. "After COVID-19, the deficit is twice. However, there is no particular data on this, as the government is not providing us with actual numbers. But based on the metric data that we have, there has been a huge downward trend for blood donation," he said, adding that in April, the total collection was just 10 to 12 per cent of usual.
According to some reports, leading blood banks in the country including the Indian Red Cross Society, which used to manage around 200 units of blood in one day before the lockdown, are now collecting 30-40 units only. Verman said that this is a nearly 90 per cent fall in donations.
He added that he is receiving numerous cases, requesting blood donation from Delhi as well as other places. One major reason for people not coming forward is the lockdown restrictions and the hype created due to COVID-19, Verma said.
"While dealing with this pandemic we are heading towards a crisis where more people are going to die due to a lack of blood," he added.
Addressing this issue, AIIMS here is conducting a huge blood donation camp and urging people to come forward and donate. Kanishk Yadav, who is a nursing officer at the hospital and is in-charge of the whole process, said that this is a message to other hospitals, encouraging them to also conduct similar drives.
"Due to covid, we have seen blood donation as a major issue, which has resulted in difficulties for patients in need of it. Keeping that in mind, AIIMS has decided to take this step," he said. The drive will be conducted on August 15.
Meanwhile, Verma said that if people come forward to donate blood, the crisis could be saved. "Hospitals are taking care of standalone protocols that are there. We are a country where we can bridge this gap of demand and supply, but we need to encourage people from the common society to come forward and donate blood at blood banks and hospitals," he added.
