Throwing caution to the wind

SUKKUR: While blood camps have been set up across the province and diehard PPP followers are donating their blood right, left and centre, the process is not following many standard operating procedures of blood donation.

The blood camps are being held to celebrate the late prime minister, Benazir Bhutto’s, 57th birthday. Moreover, other precautions involved in taking blood, such as questions about personal habits and diseases, are also lax, which can lead to a further spread of diseases among people.

People have reported that anyone can simply go up and offer to donate their blood and without the usual checking of weight, pulse, blood pressure and other precautions, the donors are pushed back onto white beds and their blood collected.

According to a survey by the government, more than 60 per cent of Khairpur district’s population is suffering from hepatitis. But blood donations are in full swing in that district as well. EDO Health Sukkur, Dr Tariq Dareshani, said that the blood they collect will be stored and screened later on. He admitted that this means that much of the blood collected might be discarded because it would be unfit for transfusion.

In Sukkur alone, where there are seven collection centres, 140 bottles of blood were collected by 7 pm. According to a study on blood banks in Karachi, which was published by the Oxford Press, blood transfusions can be fatal if carried out inefficiently. If there is any error in finding out the blood type, life threatening cross-reactions can occur. Inept collection and storage of blood means that bacterial diseases can spread.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 22^nd, 2010.