TOI : Thousands Join Blood Donation Drive At Railway Stations : Oct 23,2007
Thousands Join Blood Donation Drive At Railway Stations
Sunando Sarkar & Viju B | TNN
Mumbai: The daily jostle for a few square inches of space on suburban trains may pulverise the Mumbaikars bones but it has evidently failed to crush his spirit. Over the past few months, thousands of city denizens have been taking time off to stop at the blood donation camps organised by the State Blood Transfusion Council at railway stations to do their bit.
The figures are a silent testimony to Mumbais largeheartedness, especially if one takes into account the fact that there are thousands of commuters who do a hundred kilometres every day, often seven days a week, in conditions that are not exactly conducive to breaking the journey to donate blood. Despite this, about 12,600 Mumbaikars have responded, giving approximately 4,410 litres of blood at Andheri and Dadar, two of Mumbais busiest railway stations. Besides making the city selfsufficient in blood, the drive has worked wonders for Mumbais self-image, say SBTC officials.
Donating blood itself is a big thing but for a pressedfor-time Mumbaikar to break a journey to do so is nothing short of a miracle, says Hardeep Singh of Think Foundation. Think Foundation is the non-governmental organisation helping SBTC organise blood donation camps at railway stations, and Singh is its coordinator at Andheri.
One such Mumbaikar who took time off to perform that miracle is Parveen Ansari. Last Friday, Ansari noticed an air-conditioned cubicle on platform Number 6 while running to catch a train to Nallasopara. Curiosity led her to check out what was happening inside, even as a couple of Nallasopara-bound trains passed by. After she realised what the camp was for and spoke to one of the health personnel working there, she decided to donate a unit (350 millilitres) of blood. Yes, I will be late by an hour. But its worth it, she said. BLOOD BONDS Thanks To Voluntary Donations, Mumbai May Not Need To Air-Lift Blood From Other Centres During Moments Of Crisis
Mumbai: It is thanks to the blood-donation drive at railway stations that Mumbai will be saved from a repeat of an embarrassing situation of the last two years.
Blood had to be air-lifted from Nagpur and Aurangabad, and from as far as Chennai, to Mumbai following the glut of diseases after 26/7 in 2005. The same exercise had to be repeated in 2006 as well though the same centres might not have been the donors.
But this year will be different. This drive will make the city self-sufficient, , State Blood Transfusion Council assistant director Sanjay Jadhav said.
Psychiatrist Dhananjay Gambhire is one such Mumbaikar-in-a-rush who has contributed to this happy difference. He was travelling from Bandra to Borivli on Friday when he saw posters, announcing a blood-donation drive, as the train slowed down just before Andheri station. He gave up a comfortable seat to get down from the train. My last donation was one and a half years back, he said, explaining the hurry to donate blood. This spirit of giving runs in the family. My brother, a medical student in Aurangabad, is also a regular donor, the proud elder brother said.
Satish Sawant, a KEM Hospital laboratory technician, was quietly helping out health personnel at the Andheri cabin. A five-minute conversation revealed that he could be one of the poster-boys of Maharashtras struggle to find enough blood for its residents. It is my weekly off. So I decided to help them out, he said, pointing to the donors and the staff inside the cabin. And had he himself donated
blood ever? Yes, I have done that 49 times, he said with a smile. He is now waiting for the half century on November 24, son Ninads birthday. Everyone in the family who can donate blood will do so that day, he said, explaining: We have to wait for these special occasions; there has to be a time-lag of three months before you can donate blood.
Think Foundation vice-president Vinay Shetty is happy that the gamble to have camps at stations has paid off. I was confident about the Mumbaikars generosity, he said.
DROP OF LIFE
Annual requirement in Mumbai: 2.3 lakh units Voluntary donation in 2006: 1.6 lakh units Annual requirement in India: 80 lakh units Voluntary donation in 2006: 40 lakh units
States self-sufficient in blood: West Bengal, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu are doing well on this front
THE GREATEST GIFT
Anyone between 18 and 60 and weighing above 45 kg can donate blood once every three months
Who can give blood?
Anyone between 18 and 60 years of age in normal health and weighing 45 kg or more and with a haemoglobin content no less than 12.5 gms/hundred ml can be a donor.
Does it take long to donate blood?
It should take not more than 20 minutes.
How much blood can be donated at one go?
Blood banks take only 350 ml of blood.
How frequently can one give blood?
You cannot give blood less than 90 days after donating it once.
Why is the finger pricked before donation?
It is done to get an estimate of the haemoglobin content in blood.
Is donation painful?
You will not feel more than a prick of a needle.
When can one resume normal work?
You can go back to your normal work after 30 minutes.
Is fainting after donation common?
A donor may faint occasionally. But the most common reasons are psychological and people rushing to get up too soon after donating blood. Relax and rest a little after the donation and you will be fine.
Can one donate blood if ones weight is less than 45 kg?
It is not desirable but, in an extreme emergency, a margial difference in weight (of a couple of kilograms) is accommodated; but the amount of blood donated (in ml) should never be more than eight times the weight of the body (in kg).
What are the physical tests done before blood donation?
Health workers measure blood pressure and check heart beats besides the condition of the liver, the lung and spleen.
What laboratory tests are performed on the blood after donation?
Technicians check the donated blood for jaundice (Hepatitis B and C), malaria, HIV (AIDS), sexually transmitted diseases; compatibility tests are done before giving the blood to a recipient.
Is there any chance of contracting communicable diseases while donating blood?
Sterilised disposable bleeding sets are used; so there is no risk at all.
How long can blood be preserved in a bank?
Blood is normally preserved in blood banks for 35 days; the maximum life-span of red blood cells is 120 days.
Why does a donor card not guarantee blood from banks?
Donation in the real sense of the term is unconditional and without any string. And, if blood banks give blood to every person carrying donor cards, then there may not be blood left for patients with more serious needs? But, if there are enough donors, then there should not be any problem.
(Source: State Blood Transfusion Council)
Lab technician Satish Sawant, himself a 49-time donor, helps railway commuter Parveen Ansari donate blood at Andheri station. Ansari is among the 12,600 Mumbaikars who have donated almost 4,410 litres of blood, making the city self-sufficient in the life-saving fluid
MUMBAI GIVES: Health workers wait for donors in front of the air-conditioned cabin near platform number six at Andheri station; 3,800 railway commuters have turned up to donate blood at this camp since August
Publication:Times Of India Mumbai; Date:Oct 23, 2007; Section:Front Page; Page Number:1