The blood bank was exhausted, hundreds of Viet Duc University Hospital’s (VDUH) medical staff give blood donation during the COVID-19 pandemic

22/02/2021 08:34

 Suckhoedoisong.vn – Facing the scarcity of blood in VietDuc Hospital’s bank, there are only few dozens of blood type O,  hundreds of VDUH’s medical staff participated in a voluntary blood donation program. This event is more meaningful in the situation that COVID-19 pandemic becomes emerged.

 

In the morning of February 4^th, 2021, hundreds of VDUH’s medical staff including physicians participated in a voluntary blood donation program named “White blouse – warm heart”. This program aims to get more bloods for emergency, operations and treatment at VDUH.

 

Until the noon of this day, Blood Transfusion Center of VDUH collected 150 unit of blood type O – the scarcity type in VDUH’s blood bank, where currently remained about nearly 90 units, while its demand to use in a daily operation in VDUH is about 50 units.

 

Prof. Tran Binh Giang PhD. – VDUH’s Director said that every year, when it is near the Lunar New Year’s holidays (TET), the blood reserved scarcity usually happens. Thus, number of reserved blood dramatically reduced in the end of the year. This year, the situation even worse due to the 3rd spreading of COVID-19 pandemic, that makes blood donation events canceled.

 

 

According to Prof. Tran Binh Giang PhD., blood donation for patient’s rescuing is an event that runed by VDUH’s staff through many years, whenever the shortage of blood reserved bank happens before or after the TET holidays.

 

This event is more meaningful in the situation that the shortage of blood bank in COVID-19 pandemic becomes emerged.

 

Every day, there are about 200 elective operations and between 25-30 operations on emergency performed in VDUH that requested a dozen or several dozens of blood units for many emergency cases such as multiple injuries with rupture of liver or pancreas… “There are some days that a number of operation is so many, thus in the next morning, our blood bank reservation is exhausted and remains only few units when the demand for patients treatment is always high and reserved blood type O is in scarcity” – Prof. Tran Binh Giang PhD. said.

 

In order to keep safe blood donation during the epidemic, screening, time allocation, queue arrangement for the health staff were carefully and thoughtfully managed.

 

The meaningful blood drops have been contributing to share with patient all difficulties, in the meantime to raise the tradition of loving other as self-loving, and spread the campaign of blood donation voluntary in community.

 

All the collected bloods are checked and screened in Blood Transfusion Center – VDUH by the modern techniques to ensure the safe blood transfusion for patients.

 

Blood Transfusion Center is one of few units in whole country that can perform all missions: collection, blood component extraction, reservation, storage and supply blood, blood products for patient’s treatment. As the hospital uses to perform operations that needs many bloods immediately, this center of VDUH contributes to rescue many critical patients.

 

 

The Lunar New year coming up together with COVID-19 spreading in many provinces caused the blood donations of National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion (NIHBT) was decreased severely.

 

A pressure on collecting and supplying blood before, during and after TET holidays is always a constant concern of blood transfusion suppliers, especially for some blood products with a short reservation date such as platelet (3-5 day reservation only).

 

At NIHBT now, there is a shortage of 13,000 blood units to use for emergency and treatment before, during and after TET holidays.