Covid impact: Red Cross stares at depleting blood stocks

Vijayawada: Blood stocks are gradually decreasing in the blood banks maintained by Indian Red Cross Society in the State under the impact of lockdown and Covid-19 as blood donors are not coming forward to donate the blood. The blood donation camps are also not being conducted in the State. Students, youth, NSS volunteers, NGOs, sports persons are the main donors of blood. But due to Covid pandemic, most educational institutions are closed in the State. Consequently, the colleges, universities and other institutions are not conducting the blood donation camps. Besides, people, who have taken Covid jab are also not donating blood. As per the guidelines issued by National Blood Transfusion Council (NBTS), people who have taken Covid jab should not donate blood for two months.

The main objective of taking Covid jab is to develop the antibodies. It will take at least three to four weeks to develop the antibodies. So people who had taken Covid vaccine are not donating the blood. Lakhs of people over 45 years of age took the Covid vaccine and now they are not willing to donate the blood.

Due to drastic fall of blood donation, the blood stocks decreased in 18 blood banks run by Indian Red Cross Society, Andhra Pradesh. By March-end, the blood banks had 2397 units of blood. The stocks decreased to 1319 units by April-end, and further decreased to only 457 units by May-end, said BVS Kumar, Red Cross Blood Banks' coordinator.

Over 4,000 units of blood were stored in Red Cross Society blood banks in the State before the outbreak of Covid in March 2020. He said people suffering from thalassemia are facing hardships to get blood for transfusion. He said nearly 60 thalassemia victims including some children registered their names in Krishna district for the blood transfusion, which is done once or twice a month. Around 700 persons are suffering from thalassemia in the State. Some private blood banks are operating in the State. Besides, some corporate hospitals have their own blood banks.

Accident victims and pregnant women need blood. Due to the lockdown, the road accidents drastically declined in the State. Pregnant women generally depend on the family members, close relatives, friends and other known persons for the blood. The requirement of blood is one unit for the pregnant woman (350 ml), said BVS Kumar. The Andhra Pradesh Red Cross Society is planning to form Blood Donation Motivation Committees in the State with students, NSS volunteers, film stars' fans associations and other stake holders to restart the blood donation activity, said A Sridhar Reddy, chairman of the Andhra Pradesh Red Cross Society. He said the Red Cross Society has six mobile vehicles, which will go to other places to collect the blood from the blood donation points.

Sridhar Reddy said the Society is also planning to convene a meeting with the film starts' fans associations to resume the blood donations. He said the Covid cases are gradually declining in the State and is hopeful of restarting the blood donation activity. The Central government is planning to administer the vaccine to all people above 18 years of age from June 21. If the main donors, the youth, take vaccine from June 21 onwards, they can't donate the blood for two months. In this backdrop, the NGOs like Red Cross have to speed up the initiative to collect the blood from the youth and store to meet the requirements of the people.