Patients Still Not Getting Supply From Blood Banks

Though the state government had announced the free supply of blood units at all government hospitals this month, patients at the Civil Hospital continued to suffer due to the shortage of blood units at the blood bank of the hospital. Patients are either buying the blood units from private stores or arranging the donors on their own. On February 7, 2018, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, in collaboration with the National Health Mission (NHM), had issued a circular, making it mandatory for all government-operated blood banks to provide free blood units to the patients admitted at the hospital and the blood banks should have regular supply of blood units. However, not only the circular was implemented late, but no arrangement was made to increase the supply of blood units at the hospital. Many a times it was observed that, whenever a patient approached the blood bank, he either returned empty-handed or asked to arrange it himself. Amandeep Kaur, a resident of Nakodar, who had arrived for the treatment of her 3-year-old daughter, suffering from ‘Hemolytic anemia, said, she did not provide a single unit of blood and asked to arrange a donor.

She alleged that, even in the emergency, the blood bank operators were reluctant to provide the blood units and instead asked to manage blood unit of any other blood group and in exchange she would be given the desired blood group unit. Besides, due to the unavailability of blood, patients have to purchase blood units from private blood banks for Rs 1500 each. Anil, who was looking for a donor, said: “Despite the orders of the government to provide free blood to the patients, the patients were forced to buy the blood units at unaffordable rate.” Dr Gagandeep Singh, Blood Transfusion Officer at the blood bank said, he had organised six blood donation camps this month, but due to the unavailability of donors the sufficiency couldn’t be maintained. NGOs working for the 24 hours availability of blood units said: “The authorities at the Civil Hospital do not organize sufficient blood donation camps, that’s why the inadequacy of blood units arise.” Dr Sukhwinder Singh, director, state blood cell, said the government could organize as many blood donation camps to maintain the regular supply of blood units at the blood banks. He assured that he would look into the matter. – Tribune India