Blood donation critical for Nigeria’s healthcare system

Blood is one priced gift an individual can give to another. However, the decision to voluntarily donate one’s blood to health institutions for patients with specific conditions in the country is one challenge the nation’s healthcare systems is confronted with.

However, within the week, Nigeria joined the rest of the world to celebrate “World Blood Donor day” to raise awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products and to thank voluntary unpaid blood donors for their life-saving gifts of blood.

This year's slogan, ‘More blood, more life’ reinforced the urgent need for more people all across the globe to become life-savers by volunteering to donate blood regularly. The period was also set aside to demonstrate how health systems and policy-makers can work to make blood transfusions safe and accessible to people globally.

In spite of how invaluable this priced gift is towards saving human life, myths, cultural and traditional beliefs has made it impossible for the country  to achieve 100 percent voluntary blood donation thus creating a situation whereby those who donate blood products commercialise the process to solve their economic needs.

In an interview with Anthony Ajayi, Chief Blood Recruitment Office and hematologist, Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, disclosed that safe blood saves lives and improves health. Ajayi revealed that blood donation is needed to replace blood lost in childbirth (a major cause of maternal deaths worldwide), to treat severe anaemia that threatens the lives of thousands of children who have malaria or are undernourished, women with complications of pregnancy, such as ectopic pregnancies and haemorrhage before, during or after childbirth amongst medical ailments.

Ajayi maintained that the day aims to encourage still more people to come forward to give blood and save more lives even as the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s goal is for all countries to obtain all blood supplies from voluntary unpaid donations by 2020.

In his words “We hope that World Blood Donor Day will encourage more people in the country to become regular voluntary blood donors. It is pathetic that there are so many myths, cultural and traditional beliefs which have made it impossible for Nigeria to achieve 100 percent voluntary blood donation. People have already put traditional beliefs in it. Some say, their blood may be used for rituals or sacrifices.

“The globe is grouped into categories A, B and C nations. Nigeria is not in any category. Countries such as Togo and Contonu are in category A. But Nigeria is not any category because people have not been well informed about voluntary safe blood donation. As at now, there is ignorance about donating blood,” Ajayi added.

Lending her view, Umoru Rosemary, a registered blood donor with Lagos State Blood Transfusion Service, Alausa, Lagos State stated that voluntary unpaid blood donors form a pool that provides the safest blood possible for use wherever and whenever it is needed to save life. 

Umoru hinted that blood donation is a vital component of health care hence the threat to life due to insufficient blood stocks and risk of transfusion-transmissible infections calls for safe and adequate blood supply for all those requiring transfusion.

According to her “One is supposed to donate blood voluntary so that new red blood cells can be formed; don’t forget that health institutions need blood for medical purposes. As the need for blood increases globally, youths can make an important contribution by becoming blood donors. Nigerians at large should embrace the idea of getting registered with their state blood transfusion service center. With this, insufficient blood stocks would be reduced,” Umoru disclosed.

Taking a cursory view at the nation’s blood donation system, some Nigerians hardly donate blood voluntary. For those who donate, they are persuaded to do so.  For others who donate blood and/or blood products, such donation is made in exchange for money ranging from N1500 to N2200 per pint of blood in a bid to meet their economic needs.

Latest data from the WHO shows that in 70 countries, voluntary unpaid blood donations rose by more than 10 percent between 2007 and 2008 with India reporting the greatest increase, from 3.6 million to 4.6 million. Other countries reporting substantial increases over the same period include Afghanistan, Algeria, Belarus, Costa Rica, Japan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, United States of America, Vietnam to name but a few.

The report also revealed that in richer countries, donors tend to be older (over 44). In low and middle income countries, they are younger (under 25).  Already, WHO estimates that blood donation by at least 1 percent of the population is generally sufficient to meet a country's basic requirements for safe blood. Requirements are higher in countries with more developed health systems.

With the Federal Government introducing the National Blood Transfusion Service Centres (NBSC) situated in the six geo-political zones of the country few years ago, the NBSC is the sole regulatory authority for all blood services in the country. However, the NBSC should live to its responsibility by regulating, coordinating and supervising all the blood transfusion services in the country to avoid incidences of Nigerians commercializing the entire process.

Currently, 62 countries obtain all, or nearly all (more than 99 percent), of their blood supplies from unpaid donors- up from 57 last year with countries like Belarus , Islamic Republic of Iran, Kenya , Malaysia and Zambia been the latest to join this list. Nigeria should not be left in the scheme of things as awareness campaign should be intensified so as to achieve some per cent rise in voluntary blood donation.

This will not only guarantee sufficiency of Nigeria’s blood supply, but more importantly, prevent shortages in blood banks, and other relevant health institutions as is the case with some developing nations where quantities are very limited.