— says chief medical officer, as dedicated blood donors honoured

VOLUNTARY blood donations remain essential to the provision of live-saving health services, according to Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Shamdeo Persaud, who urged more persons to consider donating blood.

The CMO made these remarks at a simple ceremony held on Friday at the Herdmanston Lodge to honour dedicated blood donors. This ceremony was organised by the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) and it’s National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS), in observance of International Blood Donation Day 2019.

“Blood transfusions are a necessary part of any modern health care system,” Dr Persaud said, noting that these transfusions are not only needed when treating patients of accidents and trauma, but also for a variety of health services.

For 23-year-old Francine Leitch, blood was needed to save her life — 14 units of blood, to be exact. “In 2015, I was diagnosed with medicinal dysgerminoma, which is a rare, aggressive cancer,” she shared with the gathering.

Then, her haemoglobin level was just over three grammes per deciliter (g/dL) of blood; the normal level of haemoglobin in women is said to be about 12 g/dL.

“This was critically low and I needed blood and I needed it urgently,” Leitch noted. And so, after her diagnosis, she required 12 units of blood which, when received, enabled her to have her first cycle of chemotherapy.

However, she noted that after the first cycle of chemotherapy, she needed an additional two units of blood. Only after receiving these, and with further treatment, was she able to fight off her ailment.

“Fourteen units [of blood] later, my life was saved,” Leitch said gleefully. And Francine’s need for blood is one which is shared by many Guyanese.

One of the active donors, who was awarded on Friday, Angelica Holder shared too that as a healthcare worker, she has seen persons or their family members in dire need of blood and received help from the NBTS. More personally, her father was once bitten by a venomous snake — the labaria — and required blood transfusions to save his life.

According to Emergency Medicine Specialist Dr Zulfikar Bux, the labaria is a haemotoxic snake, which means that its venom prevents the blood from clotting, and victims are at risk of bleeding to death once bitten. And this was the case of the elder Holder, who could have lost his life.

“He needed a lot of blood transfusions… it was pretty traumatic, I was a child, and I know that I could’ve lost my father at the time,” Angelica recounted.

And as she grew up, she endeavoured to give blood as much as possible, which is as often as every two months, providing that she is healthy. She also donates with her family, and encourages her friends to do the same.

The CMO highlighted additionally that the “largest portion” of blood garnered by the NBTS is used by pregnant mothers. “You not only save the life of a mother, [but] you save the life of a child, and the whole family as a matter of fact, by your donation,” Dr Persaud said.

PRECIOUS

Importantly, he also highlighted that generally one unit of blood, which is about one pint or approximately 525 millilitres, can actually help up to three persons.

In Guyana, blood collection is done throughout most of the coastal regions, the CMO noted, adding that work has begun in initiating the collection of blood in hinterland areas too. Lethem, Region Nine, is one hinterland region where blood collection has been initiated.

Additionally, the public health ministry has been expanding its delivery of blood services, so that blood and blood products are now available at Bartica, Mabaruma, Lethem, Mahaicony, Fort Wellington and the Diamond Diagnostic Centre, East Bank Demerara. This means that there are more people, in more areas, who are able to access the critical substance necessary to sustain life, the CMO said.

Building on this, he disclosed that the ministry is now seeking to expand blood services to the Leonora Cottage Hospital; the Dr CC Nicholson Hospital in Nabaclis, which is a Maternal and Child Health hospital now; and to areas such as Port Kaituma and Mahdia, when those hospitals have been sufficiently developed.

“Pregnancies happen wherever people live, [there are] incidents and accidents and all other events that require blood transfusion services,” he explained. There are also people, who because of their genetic predispositions, might require blood transfusions from time to time.

But the services for blood transfusion — which is the actual collection of blood– are centralised (in Georgetown), to allow for greater blood safety in all facets. Each time blood is donated, the NBTS checks that blood, using more than 11 ‘markers’ to ensure that the blood is safe from any diseases and so that 100 percent safety of the blood can be guaranteed, the CMO underscored.

Director of the NBTS, Dr Pedro Lewis, giving remarks too, sought to highlight that in the near future Guyana will boast a “trauma centre,” which will better manage emergency cases, including addressing patient flow, isolation and capacity

Dealing with trauma cases however would require a large and constant supply of blood, according to the director.

“We have to realise that the Ministry of Public Health is moving towards building a trauma centre very soon, and when we talk [about] trauma, we are talking about a lot of blood needed,” Dr Lewis said. “We need approximately five percent of Guyana’s population to be voluntary donors, which is about 30,000 to 35,000 donors. “

Nevertheless, he boasted that there are more than 10,000 voluntary donors in Guyana who contribute to the country’s record of 100 percent voluntary donations. These donations, which are expected to amount to about 12,000 units for this, are adequate to satisfy the requests of the private hospitals and the public facilities.

“There will come a time when we look into trauma and trauma situations and we will need a lot of blood and blood distributions,” he said however.