The total voluntary blood collection (VBD) in Delhi in 2016-2017 accounted for only 45 percent of the total blood units collected. While various other states of the country have achieved more than 90 percent VBD.
Blood is a necessary requirement for critical surgeries like heart procedures, treatment for cancer and malignancies, transplantation, trauma and burn cases. At the same time, people with immune system disorders who need antibody treatment or those with bleeding disorders like haemophilia etc, women suffering from postpartum haemorrhage, might need blood urgently.
In such a scenario, there is high importance of World Blood Donor Day on 14th June, when nations make even more dedicated efforts to create awareness about the importance of voluntary blood donation.
A donor is supposed to be provided with an elaborate questionnaire at a blood center before undergoing any preliminary screening/blood tests for donation. The questionnaire ensures safety of both the donor as well as the recipient. There are national guidelines available for the acceptance and deferral (permanent or temporary) of an individual as blood donor.
There can be various types of donations, such as:
As per WHO, just 1 percent of the nation’s population is sufficient to meet its overall requirements of safe blood transfusion.
(Dr Daljit Kaur is Consultant at Blood Bank and Transfusion Medicine, Max Super Speciality Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, New Delhi.)
(This piece is being republished on the occasion of World Blood Donor Day on 14 June)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)