Punjab News- 150 donate blood at Max Hospital camp to mark National Voluntary Blood Donor Day

Mohali, October 1, 2013: In celebration of National Voluntary Blood Donor Day, Max Super Speciality Hospital Mohali, the leading healthcare service provider of the region, today organized a blood donation camp at its premises. As many as 150 people including staff members and doctors from the hospital donated blood at the camp as an expression of their commitment to their patients. The hospital also organized a function to felicitate the regular Voluntary Donors from the hospital who often donate blood at the hospital’s Blood Bank.

Speaking during occasions, Dr Kuldeep Singh, In-charge of Blood Bank, Max Super Speciality Hospital Mohali said that everyday hundreds of people in India required blood for a transfusion, a surgery or some medical procedure. According to official statistics, our nation required 4 crore units of blood and only 40 lakh units were actually available. India has its own unique problems when it came to providing safe blood to the patients. As per the National Blood Transfusion Council, Blood Banks were one of the significant ways to promote voluntary blood donation in the country, remarked Dr Singh.

Dr Singh further said that Max Super Speciality Hospital, Mohali has always been ahead in aiding patients with their blood requirements. At the Max Blood Bank, our objective has always been to ensure 100% safety and quality of blood. We were equipped with the state of the art facilities in the field of donor apheresis (process of removal of whole blood from a patient or donor) and therapeutic apheresis, apart from the regular component separation and requisite advanced laboratory for blood screening. Other than the regular Platelets, Fresh frozen plasma, Apheresis platelet (the process involving collection of blood by a machine, which separates the plasma, red cells and platelets and returns the red cells and/or platelets back to the donor.), Cryoprecipitate (A concentrated blood component made from fresh frozen plasma) and Blood grouping services, we also offered services such as leucoreduced (removing approximately 10% of red blood cells ) and irradiated (exposed to radiation) concentrated red blood corpuscles which benefited the patients who would need multiple transfusions like Oncology and Dialysis patients. Using specialised techniques, we could also provide quality and safe blood components to the newborns, he informed.

Dr. Ashutosh Sood, General Manager- Operations, Max Super Speciality Hospital Mohali, said that through this camp, we wish to connect with our patients by building a resource which was often a lifesaving resource for most patients in the time of emergency.

Meanwhile the Department of Transfusion Medicine at Max hospital Mohali has compiled the largest Blood Donor database spread over the whole of North India in order to provide information and benefit patients in need of blood. The team also maintains high vigilance on Quality Control. In addition to the five tests laid down by the Drug Controller of India, the team also performs an extra test for Hepatitis B on each unit of blood donated. Keeping in line with the International norms of good transfusion practices, the hospital rarely uses whole blood resulting, hence conserving this precious resource. Patients benefit a great deal with the use of component therapy as opposed to whole blood. With an objective to encourage the practice of blood donation, the hospital has been regularly honoring and acknowledging the Voluntary Donors in the region which has resulted in higher donor retention and recruitment.