Spare just 10 minutes and save a life

IN a semi-prone position, Susanne Lee calmly gazed at a small plastic bag next to her, filling steadily with her blood as her grip tightened on a white cylindrical stress ball.

The 25-year-old was donating blood for the first time at a blood drive held at the shopping mall where she works.

“When I found out a blood donation campaign was being organised at Plaza Merdeka, I thought helping out with a pint was the right thing to do,” she said as she surveyed her surroundings where seven others were propped up on contoured chairs with blood filling into flexible blood bags.

Like most people, Lee initially thought donating blood would hurt but was really surprised ‘it isn’t painful at all’ after the medic inserted the needle.

“Being able to do more to help those in need of blood really excites me now that I know donating blood is a painless and quick procedure,” she enthused.

Another person who understands the need for blood is recipient-turned-donor Datin Lau Ai Huon.

She decided to give blood after the birth of her youngest son 29 years ago. During her labour and C-section (caesarean), she had complications and needed blood.

“It was the blood I received that kept me alive and also encouraged me to donate blood. Since then, I’ve been donating as a way to give back to society,” said the businesswoman who has given blood an astounding 95 times.

Knowing the importance of maintaining a steady blood supply, the 53-year-old called for more people, especially women, to become donors.

“In addition to saving those in need of blood, there are also health benefits as from my years of donating blood, I found it has reduced my blood pressure.”

Both Lee and Lau are among the growing number of people stepping forward to become donators at blood drives and campaigns organised by associations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in collaboration with the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) Blood Bank.

Ultimate humanitarian act

SGH Head of Transfusion Unit and Blood Bank Dr Mohammad Masrin Md Zahrin said the hospital had been working closely with these organisations to raise awareness of the need for regular blood donations to ensure constant supply due to the short lifespan of blood components.

“Voluntary donation of blood is the ultimate humanitarian act which saves the lives of thousands everyday and results in significantly improved quality of life for thousands more. It is an altruistic gift and should never become a marketable commodity.

“Just as voluntary action in general helps promote family, community, national and global solidarity, voluntary blood donation underscores global solidarity in respect of a priceless gift that is blood,” he told thesundaypost.

SGH now collects an average of 1,600 blood bags each month with the 2015 stockpile reaching 20,411 units as of Dec 13.

The number of new donors has also grown from 2,978 in 2014 to 3,071 this year.

However, Dr Masrin hoped more donors would continue coming forward to ensure a consistent and sustainable supply at the Hospital’s Blood Bank.

“We collected around 19,566 blood bags from blood donations last year. The amount is actually insufficient. Though the present collection of donated blood stands at a commendable level of two per cent of the population, the target for true self-sufficiency in blood and blood products can only be achieved when donated blood hits five per cent of the total population.

“Our goal is to grow and maintain a sustainable and regular pool of blood donors, particularly from the younger generation. We need to increase the number of young blood donors between 17 and 25 years old to 35 per cent of the donor population compared to 30 per cent (donor population) today.”

The major barriers

Dr Masrin acknowledged that while more people were now aware of the importance of blood donation, there were also factors that hindered others from giving blood.

“The major barriers include public perception that there is enough blood stock, fear of pain and needles, inconvenience of finding parking space at blood donation centres, long waiting time at some large-scale blood drives as well as lack of knowledge and information regarding importance of blood donation.

“Another reason cited by the public is, surprisingly, the fear of gaining weight. Some people have the misconception they will eat more after donating blood because the body needs to be replenished, but this is untrue, so donors should not worry,” he assured.

In fact, Dr Masrin pointed out, donating blood was a simple and safe procedure and each session usually took around 10 minutes.

“The donor will be made as comfortable as possible, usually in a special chair or on a bed. The area inside one of his or her elbows will be cleaned with an anti-septic solution before a trained health personnel inserts a sterile needle, connected to a blood collection bag, into the vein. The procedure usually takes about 10 minutes.

“After resting 10 or 15 minutes and taking some refreshment, donors will be able to return to their normal activities although it is advisable to avoid strenuous activities for the rest of the day and to drink plenty of fluids over the next 24 hours,” he advised.

According to Dr Masrin, donated blood will be quarantined and subsequently screened for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV and Syphilis. Once the greenlight is given, the blood is processed into components — plasma, platelets and packed cells (red blood cells) which are then distributed to hospitals or stored.

Medical history

He also explained that before giving blood, a donor would be asked some questions on his or her medical history such as current health and lifestyle and whether medication was being taken.

“These questions are asked in the interests of the health of both donor and recipient alike. It’s very important to be truthful about any reasons why your blood might not be suitable.”

He pointed out that although blood should always be tested for infections transmissible via transfusion such as HIV, hepatitis B and C, Syphilis and Malaria, a test may not be able to detect a very recent infection.

“This means even though the blood may test negative for a particular infection, it might still infect a patient receiving a blood transfusion.”

After answering the questions, the donor will be given a brief medical examination that may include checking blood pressure to ensure the donor’s weight meets a certain minimum, and taking a prick of blood from the fingertip to check for anaemia.

Red blood cells last up to a maximum of 42 days and platelets can only to be kept for five to seven days.

Dr Masrin emphasised the short lifespan of blood components was the reason the SGH Blood Bank is constantly in need of supply.

“Red blood cells have a lifespan of about 120 days in the body. Then they die and have to be replenished. Instead of letting them go to waste, donating them can help save lives.”

With the upcoming festive holiday season, Dr Masrin made an empathic call to donors to drop by hospital blood banks or even at blood drives statewide to give blood.

“The blood banks usually experience a drop in donations, particularly during the holiday season where most people are travelling. For this reason, our blood bank will organise blood drives daily in collaboration with associations and organisations as part of our efforts to ensure sufficient blood stock for this month,” he said, adding that SGH is targeting 2,000 blood bags for December.

As rightly pointed out by Dr Masrin, since blood donations are needed more than ever in the run-up to Christmas, the gift of blood will be the best blessing for those who really need it during the festive season … and beyond.