MALKANGIRI: The District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) here is facing an acute shortage of blood. The blood bank does not have sufficient stock of blood as there has been a decline in the number of voluntary donors in the recent past.
While there is a demand of 300 units of blood in the DHH every month, only 43 units are available daily on an average in the blood bank. There is a shortage of blood belonging to both rare and common groups. According to sources in the blood bank, there are 25 units of O+, 10 units of A+, two units of AB+, one unit of AB- and five units of B+ available in the blood bank as of today. There is no stock of blood group like O-, A- and B- available in the blood bank.
Sources added that the DHH is not organising awareness camps on blood donation at regular intervals as a result of which, not many are coming forward to donate blood. On the other hand, attendants of patients are running from pillar to post to procure blood. Those who cannot afford to purchase blood suffer silently. Taking advantage of the situation, middlemen are fleecing people in urgent need of blood by charging heavy amount for one unit of blood.
Contacted, Chief District Medical Officer Amarendranath Mohanty said while the demand for blood transfusion is more, the number of donors are less. Most of the people, who are coming forward to donate blood, are not being allowed to do so as they are either anaemic or suffer from malaria, Mohanty said, adding that the DHH will organise a blood donation camp on October 17 to collect more blood units.