KORAPUT: With voluntary blood donors unable to step out of their houses due to the lockdown, a group of volunteers have begun using a mobile blood collection van to reach out to them.The sole mobile blood collection van in the district, attached to Saheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital (MCH), was inaugurated by Health Minister Naba Kishore Dash in October 2019 but had been lying unused for the last three months.
After the Coronavirus outbreak, members of the District Blood Donors and Motivators Forum approached the MCH and local administration to let them run the van to collect blood from donors at their doorsteps. With permission of the MCH, the forum members began operating the van 10 days back. Earlier, donors used to visit hospitals and blood donation camps to donate blood. However, voluntarily blood donation had completely stopped after the lockdown.
The forum members with the help of officials concerned have prepared a list of voluntary donors in both urban and rural areas of the district and are visiting their houses everyday for collection of blood. In the last 10 days, they have collected 395 units of blood and handed over to blood bank of the MCH. And the donation is being carried out while adhering to the social distancing protocol. “We are ensuring that safe distance is maintained during blood donation in the van and sanitisation process is followed”, forum advisor Uma Patra said.
President of the forum, G Sanjiv Kumar informed that apart from collecting blood from voluntary donors, the members motivated another 250 persons in Semliguda, Nandapur, Boipariguda and Koraput blocks to donate blood.
According to Blood Bank Officer of the MCH, Madhusudan Baliarsingh, 25 to 30 units of blood are required in the MCH every day. There are 670 registered Thalassemia and sickle-cell patients who are being supplied blood every month from the MCH blood bank free of cost. “From April 1 to 11, we have distributed 145 blood units. With the blood provided by the forum members, there will not be any shortage next month”, he informed.