There has been an increase in the demand for blood units and its components despite the increase in the number of donors, according to the Central Blood Bank in Bausher, part of the Department of Blood Banks Services at the Ministry of Health (MoH).
The demand for blood units per day in all the hospitals and clinics is 140 units whereas it was 100 units on an average before 2020, an increase of nearly 40 per cent.
The demand for blood and its components has been steadily rising from 10 per cent to 15 on an average basis and it has suddenly jumped four fold, according to the CBB.
According to the Department, the cases that require blood transfusion or one of its components are RTA cases, any other accidents (workplace/home), during surgeries, malignant blood diseases, bone marrow failure, some cases of genetic blood diseases, some cancerous tumors, and in some cases of childbirth.
"We have raised the sourcing of blood units and hundreds of blood donation camps are organised, some on our own while some are in cooperation with private organisations," a representative of the Blood Bank at the Hala Polyclinic blood donation camp told the Observer.
The Department raised the voluntary blood donation rate to 96 per cent at the level of the central blood bank, in addition to increasing the number of collected blood units to 14 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020. In addition, the Department organised many blood donation campaigns in cooperation with different authorities. In 2021, it conducted more than 300 blood donation campaigns.
"However, the demand for blood units is steadily rising owing to many factors," he added.
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