Gurdaspur blood bank gasps for life

Ravi Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Gurdaspur, November 1

Employees of the Gurdaspur Civil Hospital blood bank have been ringing up college principals and members of NGOs to ensure that a continuous supply of blood is maintained. It is mandatory to maintain a level of 350 units daily in the bank. However, with not many volunteers coming forward, this level has dropped considerably to 195 units.

Officials fear that in case of a major accident, in which the number of victims suddenly increases, they might have to scout for other avenues for blood.

Blood is collected by two methods, one being voluntary donation and the other through the “replacement method”. In the second method, patients’ family members have to provide some amount of blood, if not the exact quantity that the hospital provides to the patient.

Jagdeep Kaur, a counsellor working in the department, calls up college principals almost daily. “It is a Herculean task trying to persuade students to donate blood. We need 10,000 units per annum. However, we are getting just 5,000 units. An individual who donates blood after every three months starting from the age of 18 years will have donated 40 gallons of blood till he reaches 60 years, potentially saving more than 1,000 lives. This is what I tell students in order to convince them,” she said.

Blood is required for accident victims, Thalassemia patients, women undergoing deliveries, anaemia and blood cancer patients.

“I have to convince people that if they do not donate, there are chances that the blood might turn hypercoagulable, which means it may become thick and thus move slow. This increases the risk of having a blood clot or stroke,” says Jagdeep.

She says the only saving grace was the contribution being made by a social organisation, the Nirankari Mission. “The Nirankari Mission is the backbone of voluntary donation in this part of the region. It holds mega camps every four months,” said Shaminder Kaur Ghuman, in charge of the blood bank.

“Earlier, colleges and NGOs used to regularly hold camps. However, these days, not much activity is seen as volunteers are not willing to come forward,” she says.