The following article relating to remand for replacement blood units has been taken from the Facebook post of one of our volunteer.
If the blood banks can't accept blood from reputed, licensed blood banks in the city then why should the Government ask for increasing voluntary blood donation at all?
1. 20 people were pulled out of their office today to donate blood for a patient. The family was told that is was extremely urgent. These people donated blood because someone who they knew requested them to help saying that leaving office, going and donating blood in emergency was the only way to save the life.
2. Over the weekend came across several stories of cardiac patients who needed blood in prestigious hospitals requesting for blood in desperation. Several donors spent their weekend in the hospital donating blood.
3. A lady called from the hospital asking for 2 'live donors'. When asked to connect to the doctor and when the doctor was offered to be given 'any' number of units of blood if needed, the doctor said - 'no no our hospital policy is like that. you can't get blood from other blood banks.' The helpless family was pleading for donors. On calling the blood bank medical officer the reaction was - 'We never force anybody to donate blood. If they have willing donors they can bring in.'
This is when Bangalore has ABSOLUTELY NO SHORTAGE OF VOLUNTARILY DONATED BLOOD in this period thanks to the immense contribution of voluntary blood donors across the city. The 4 stories mentioned above come from the pioneering institutions of town.
THIS IS BLACKMAIL. UNETHICAL. AGAINST THE POLICY OF THE LAND. For vested interests, blood banks across Bangalore continue to shed THEIR responsibility of arranging for blood and keep holding the patients to ransom and demand replacement blood donation. Kind hearted donors and helpless families continue to oblige.
If the blood banks can't accept blood from reputed, licensed blood banks in the city then why should the Government ask for increasing voluntary blood donation at all? There is a wide gap between the claims of these institutions and what they put the patient through.
It is high time that voluntary blood donors who are forced to go and replace blood in hospitals and patients who are demanded replacement start protesting against this injustice, cheating and abuse of situation by the so called state-of-the-art hospitals!
Mr Vinay Shetty of Think Foundation replied:
Our repeated complaints to the authorities have yielded results. This time we managed to get more organizations to complain; and personally met the Health Minister, who then called for a meeting of all the concerned authorities. On 6.5.2014, the FDA has sent a letter to all blood banks warning them of strict action if pressure is brought on patients to replace blood units/if hospitals refuse to take blood units available in licensed blood banks/if hospitals insist on getting blood units from a specific blood bank/if hospitals insist on donors being brought to their blood bank. The letter mentions the National Blood Policy, and points out that the onus of organizing blood is that of the hospital and not of the patient.
A good beginning - but we need to be vigilant, and ensure that patients exercise their rights.
Meanwhile this is what came through from Mumbai.
Private blood banks across Mumbai warned against forcing patients' kin to seek replacement donors
MidDay - 8th June 2014
State Blood Transfusion Council warns blood banks of strict action if they are found forcing patients to look for replacement blood donors.
The State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC) has finally woken up to the issue of patients’ relatives being forced to look for replacement donors by private blood banks across the city. In a circular which was recently issued to blood banks across the city (a copy is with midday), the SBTC has announced the implementation of the National Blood Policy, which clearly states that forcing hapless relatives to look for replacement blood donors is a gross violation of the policy.
Periodic inspections will be carried out by the district blood transfusion officer attached to the government blood bank.
As per the National Blood Policy, the practice of replacement donors was to be gradually phased out to have a voluntary non-remunerated blood donation programme in place. Despite that, however, the SBTC received several complaints from patients through various NGOs, stating that they were forced to hunt for blood donors when they were told to undergo blood transfusions.
The policy, which was put forward by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) in 2002, also states that the State Transfusion Councils should ensure that the phasing out of replacement donors takes place after having a good network of regional banks in place.
In its circular, the SBTC has warned blood banks that strict action will be taken against them if they are found guilty of violating this rule. “The district blood transfusion officer attached to the government blood bank will carry out periodic inspections and report to the SBTC,” an official from the SBTC said.
The circular further warns that the erring bank’s No Objection Certificate (NOC) — mandatory for the renewal of the bank’s licence — will be either suspended or cancelled. The implementation of the National Blood Policy took place on June 3. Despite repeated attempts, Dr Sanjay Jadhav, director of the SBTC, remained unavailable for comment.
The policy further states that hospitals in a particular area (for example, south Mumbai) should co-ordinate with each other as and when the need for a particular blood group crops up.