THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On any day Tejus, the blood donation forum largely based out of Technopark, gets over 30 frantic calls. Having battled this ever-burgeoning need for blood for the past several years, the collective can now rest assured. On World Blood Donor Day, a unique app to facilitate blood donation is set to be launched.
With the team members of Tejus sharing all their ‘pain areas’ - having experienced all the lows of arranging blood donations - with the app developers, BloodLink was born.“It was Tejus which approached us seeking to develop a blood donor app. And now we have the BloodLink,” says Sreeji Gopan who led the app development team. The app is developed by Technopark-based company Gemini Software Solutions as part of its CSR initiative. The employees of the company Brijesh P I, Reshmi Nambiar, Sajeev S, Sajeev Ambi, Shambu Satyan, Sebastian Thomas and Pradeep Soman were part of the team.
“Ensuring the authenticity of the requests and protecting the privacy of the donors were some of the major issues we grappled with. Several messages seeking blood donation are doing the rounds. To weed out the bogus ones is difficult and stalls our time. The app will go a long way in ensuring this,” says Sreeji.
“Once the app is launched, arranging donors and putting out a request will be a breeze for all,” says Tejus co-founder Brijesh. “We lose so much time making calls to identify donors. For the effective addressing of blood donation requirements, we have to tap into the technological potential of such an app which can ease the whole process of blood donation. With the app, we will get to respond effectively and arrange the donors easily through this,” Brijesh adds.
One only needs to give basic details while installing the app. Via Bloodlink, one can either request for a camp; request a donor, and view the active blood requests or active camps. “The app has admins and co-ordinators who will manage the requests. The admin will make the background checks and assign the request to one of the co-ordinators. That person will have to follow up only that particular request. This ensures efficient management of the request, assuring that the donation request is met,” Sreeji adds.
The bystander seeking blood needn’t have to worry about contacting the donors and the prospective donors will not be flooded with unsolicited calls. “This is a moderated app and it has to be so,” he adds.
One will get notified in case of camps and donor requests to which the person can choose to partake. “If no one expresses interest, the donors’ database can be availed of,” says Reshmi, one of the app developers.
There is also an option to share the blood donation request in social media which can reach out to more crowd. The contact details of the donors are protected and this avoids unsolicited calls, she adds. “The awareness on blood donation is there but more people need to come forward. There are several misconceptions regarding blood donation and this needs to be addressed. Only then can we bridge the gap between blood donation and requirement,” she says.
The team hopes to develop a huge database of donors which can address the blood donation requirements. “With more than 70,000 employees, Technopark has a huge potential of meeting the blood donation requirements arising in the city. Our hope is to enlist this potential crowd in the app and then bridge the gap in the blood donor requirement,” says Brijesh.
“In the first phase, the needs of Thiruvananthapuram are being addressed. Once it picks up pace, we intend to launch the same in other districts,” says Renjit Darwin who is the Global Head (Delivery), of the company. The app will be available in Playstore.
Many events in the city
The World Blood Donor Day will be marked by a host of programmes in the city. Technopark will play host to a mega event as Tejus, Terumo Penpol and All Kerala State Blood Donors Society(KEBS) mark the programme with panel discussions, felicitation of repeat regular donors and institutions, motivators and NGOs. Meanwhile, the Terumo Penpol is organising a ‘Thank You Blood Donor Greeting Card Design Contest’ for college students, high school and higher secondary students.