This article highlights an important aspect of planning that must be incorporated by all blood banks to prevent acute shortage of blood in summer season.
This month when we send the newsletter most of us in Karnataka have a relatively comfortable situation when it comes to blood stocks. Last week, there was a blood bank in Bangalore willing to spare a couple of 100 units of blood to blood banks who might have lower stocks and they found no takers. Good stocks, frequent camps and reasonably full blood shelves. Two months later the situation is expected to change drastically. It has been an annual patten that from the mid of April the stocks begin to fall and by mid-May Kanataka almost faces crisis of blood. Just to give a small example of how volatile our blood supply is, about 3 months back in the beginning January, the state was facing acute shortage of blood components. So, with this knowledge that left to itself the supply of blood is not regular and uniform the question is what steps are being taken to correct this imbalance. Blood primarily comes from four groups; the industry, the educational institutions, the religious institutions and the social groups/public drives. April enjoys good stocks thanks to the high degree of activity from the educational institutions (which have middle of the academic semesters going on) and religious institutions. We also have the evergreen supply from the industries coming into the blood banks. At this time the following facts have to be acknowledged:
- the educational institutions will stop giving a lot of blood soon as they enter the end semester time.
- there are no more festivals coming post Ugadi which might trigger donations
- in summers - especially in places where the mercury crosses 40 degrees, social institutions and public is unlikely to conduct any drives
And therefore the logical corrective action that could be taken up by all blood bankers is to request the last remaining pillar - the industry to postpone the drives they wish to organise now to the months of May and June. A little advance planning with convincing talk with the organisers could help you postpone some drives from a time of plenty to a time of acute need. Sankalp's Rakta Kranti team has always followed a consultative approach to schedule blood drives with the blood banks and the industry. With our experience we are pretty confident of the fact that most of the industry is happy to schedule drives to match the expected shortage period. all that it needs is planning and talking!
Wishing a preparation for the upcoming summers to all our blood bankers!