‘Blood needed for transfusion won’t be given before surgery’

jalpaiguri: Now, blood required for transfusion will not be given before surgery. It will be reserved in the name of the specific patient at the blood bank. If necessary, the patient’s family can withdraw it when required. This has been decided by the authorities of Jalpaiguri Medical College and Hospital in order to stop the wastage of blood.

Approval was granted for this initiative in an online meeting by the officials of the State Health Department recently. Additionally, approval has been obtained for micro blood donation at the hospital’s blood bank also.

On average, around 50 to 60 units of blood are provided daily from Jalpaiguri Medical College Hospital’s blood bank. These units are allocated to various departments within the hospital as well as different government and private nursing homes across the district. Furthermore, blood is also supplied to health centres in other locations such as Mekhliganj and Halidibari in Cooch Behar district based on their requirements.

“However, it has been observed that there is some wastage of blood collected for patients. When a patient has to undergo surgery, blood is collected in advance through requisition. Unfortunately, it seems that the collected blood is not always used for its intended purpose. Blood cannot be returned once it has been dispatched from the blood bank. This blood could have been utilised for other patients. This has come to our notice on multiple occasions. New arrangements are being made to address this.’’

MSVP of the Medical College Hospital has informed that from now on, blood will be reserved in the blood bank by requisitioning it in the name of the patient. If necessary, the family members will be able to obtain the blood for the patient. Regarding nursing homes, discussions will be held with the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to make suitable arrangements. In case of an urgent need for blood, it can be obtained by providing a requisition.