EIGHT open heart surgeries are scheduled to be performed at the Georgetown Public Hospital next month, and Coordinator of the National Blood Transfusion Services (NBTS), Ms. Shameeza Mangal, has repeated the call for voluntary blood donors to come forward.
“We do not have any confirmed group drives, and there are only a small number of donors making use of the walk-in services that we have…our current collection is painfully slow,” she said.
According to her, each open heart surgery requires approximately 13 units.
Mangal stressed the need for the wider public to support Guyana’s Good Samaritan Programme.
The programme, Guyana’s flagship blood donor recruitment programme, is designed to encourage all adult Guyanese to become a blood donor and allows each Guyanese to contribute to saving lives. Through this programme, the Health Ministry aims to have more that 7,000 Guyanese becoming regular blood donors. If this target is met, and donors give blood twice a year, Guyana can be assured of 12,000 units of blood annually.
The hospital does approximately 15,000 surgeries a year, and some 2,000 women need blood each year when they deliver babies through cesarean section, while others need blood to address their anemia, and cancer patients are also in need.
“We need people to come forward and help us meet the urgent need we have and help save lives. In addition to the open heart surgeries, there are other elected surgeries, and the requests from private hospitals. We also have to cater for emergency needs,” Mangal said.
Voluntary givers are welcome at all five sites nationwide: the NBTS headquarters in Georgetown, West Demerara Regional, New Amsterdam, Suddie and Linden hospitals. Persons requiring further information can call 227-0418.