Blood donation: Leveraging the power of technology to save lives.
Author: Lilys Njeru Mutinda
Aga Khan University, Kenya
Marked annually, World Blood Donor Day celebrates blood donors and is a major focus for action towards achieving universal access to safe blood transfusion. This year’s theme was, “Give blood, give plasma, share life, share often".
Blood is a life-sustaining connective fluid that consists of platelets, plasma, and blood cells. It transports nutrients and oxygen and removes metabolic waste from the cells. Blood can however be lost because of various conditions from accidents to haemorrhages or premature infants and individuals having heart surgeries. Against the backdrop of blood-saving millions of lives and a key component in advancing Kenya's Universal Health Coverage (UHC) agenda, blood donation services in Kenya face consistent major shortages (Mwai, 2020).
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) about 118.54 million blood donations are collected worldwide annually. 40 percent of these are collected in high-income countries, home to 16 percent of the world’s population. However, this is still below the required supplies.
Last year, both the United States and the United Kingdom faced critical situations concerning their blood supplies, prompting authorities to issue urgent warnings. In January, the American Red Cross declared a nationwide blood shortage crisis for the first time, largely attributed to the challenging aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic brought about unprecedented disruptions to blood collection efforts and reduced donor participation, leading to a significant decline in available blood resources.
Similarly, in the months of October and November 2022, the UK's NHS Blood and Transplant service raised an “amber alert” due to the concerning state of the country's blood stocks. Hospitals were asked to implement management plans to safeguard blood supplies, which included rescheduling some non-urgent medical procedures. The shortage was attributed, in part, to a lack of adequate staff to attend to blood donors, making it challenging to maintain a steady and sufficient supply of blood.
Many Kenyans, like individuals in other countries around the world, have witnessed their own or a loved one’s life-determining need for blood, platelets, or plasma.
Given the dire need for blood, platelets and plasma in hospitals, many individuals are rising up to support their communities with blood drives.
One such person’s is Aisha Dafalla, a Kenya national who is working within her local community to increase the number of blood donors in Kenya. Her story is one of admiration and determination to create change.
“I can’t have my phone off,” says Aisha Dafalla, sitting next to me. She was responding to my declaration of putting my phone on airplane mode to avoid any distractions during our interview. “See: I carry my charger with me wherever I go.”
Aisha Dafalla, 59, is a volunteer blood donor who uses the power of WhatsApp to share vital information about urgent blood needs and mobilize people to donate. As a Kenyan national, her goal is to boost donations for the country and her community’s blood supply.
She founded the group, ‘Volunteer blood donor’ in 2022. Today, this group has a membership of more than 200 dedicated blood donors from different parts of Kenya. “When I wake up in the morning, which is usually at 4 am, I check the pleas for blood donation that I have received on my social media platforms and share them on the group and on my Facebook timeline. Over time, I have built a dedicated team of volunteer donors hence I no longer have to explicitly implore their assistance. They understand that beneath each plea for blood donation is a life at risk and the blood is their lifeline,” she shares.
This is partly because of limited willing and voluntary blood donors. For instance, in the northern region of Kenya, some communities consider blood transfusion or donation as a taboo resulting to acute blood shortage (Walter, 2023). Ensuring safe collection, storage, and delivery of blood from donors can also be a challenge. In 2020, US government through the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief, one of the main donors, cut funding and this led to a drop of blood units collected from 1,500 to 1,000 (Mwai, 2020). Luckily, many individuals are rising to advocate for the importance of this issue in the long-term, while supporting their communities in the immediate short-term with blood drives.
“When it comes to blood donation, some quarters are reluctant to donate because they don’t know where to do it or some of the appeals don’t reach them. When we conduct blood donation campaigns, I engage with the first-time donors to spread the word and encourage them to return.”
In 2018, 77 percent of those who came out to donate blood were first-time donors. Aisha shares her excitement about first-time donors as they are critical in ensuring that there is a stable and diverse blood supply, meeting the ever-changing demand for blood, expanding the donor pool, and creating more awareness.
Kenya relies heavily on donors to advance its campaigns on blood drives and collections. The 2022 performance audit report on the management of blood transfusion services by Kenya Blood Transfusion and Transplant Service (KBTTS), now known as Kenya Tissue and Transplant Authority (KTTA) revealed that at least 1,100 patients need blood in Kenya every day, with 60 percent of the donated blood used by pregnant mothers and children due to birth-related complications. According to recommendations by WHO, a country should collect units of blood from at least one percent of its population. During the period 2016/2017-2018/2019, KNBTS missed the annual targets by 40,922 units of blood.
Notably, Aisha is not paid for her efforts. She only receives sporadic honorariums from organisations with whom she partners for blood drives but likens her volunteering to an offering. Already this month, she has posted appeals for more than 15 individuals who need blood in different parts of the country through the volunteer blood donor WhatsApp group she has helped run for two years. The importance of the group, she shares, is that it has volunteers even from the far-flung areas, so the information spreads fast.
How it all started
The first time Aisha donated blood was back in secondary school at age 17. She recalls that just like her classmates, the motivation then was a loaf of bread and a bottle of soda promised to her at the end of exercise. Usually, some form of replenishment (a loaf of bread and soda) is given to volunteers afterwards. This is given to replenish the blood and energy lost.
She didn’t go back until more than five years later. “I was 23 and in an entry-level job when I went for my second donation. One of my then colleague’s friends was in critical condition and needed blood. Unfortunately, we lost him. That incident, coupled with the many appeals that had begun to infiltrate my world shifted something in me. I started asking around when I can donate and I have been doing it since except when I was pregnant and breastfeeding,” says the mother of three.
Aisha has also rallied members of her family to donate blood with her son being a frequent blood donor.
In 2021, the 59-year-old was recognized and appointed by former Kenyan minister in charge of health docket, Mutahi Kagwe as Kenya’s blood ambassador and decorated the highest female donor, a title that she has held since 2016. These recognitions did not come with any financial gains, just more travels within Kenya at her own expense —often having to split between Nairobi and Mombasa, where her family resides.
“Despite the inadequacy and most times, non-existent compensation for my work in encouraging people to donate blood, that has not stopped me from spreading the word and organising blood drives. All I want is to save lives. I get financial support from my son, and I occasionally get meeting allowances from the technical groups that I am part of,” she offers.
After 76 donations, donating blood totalling 38 litres, Aisha is retiring from the practice and focusing on donating platelets and plasma which is also in high demand in her country, Kenya. Platelets are tiny cells in our blood responsible for clotting and halting bleeding. They play a vital role in the survival and treatment of millions of individuals facing cancer, chronic illnesses, and injuries. The demand is further heightened by the fact that in every 15 seconds, someone needs platelets and once collected, they must be used within five days. Plasma is used by trauma, burn and cancer patients. One can donate every 28 days and the donation process takes an average of one hour and 15 minutes.
Fact: Type AB plasma is the only universal type and can be given to patients of any blood type. Only 4 percent of the population has type AB blood.
“I had set a personal milestone to stop at 70 times, but the pleas kept coming so I went in six more times. However, for my wellness, I have decided to focus on donating blood components such as platelets and plasma to help save cancer patients and those facing life-threatening diseases and injuries. With this, the frequency of donation is every seven days. Since last year, I have donated five times,” she offers.
According to Nick Kiptanui, head of technical services and specialist public health system management application at KTTA, Kenyans need to adopt a culture of continuous donating.
“While we are seeing an increase in the number of people contributing, the biggest challenge is that many quarters only act when called upon, say in situations of national disasters then stop donating. But, to meet the demand, they need to keep donating so we can replenish our banks as blood is perishable after about 42 days. With the support from advocates, like Aisha, the country can marginally meet its blood demands,” he offers.
Globally, there is an urgent need to increase the pool of volunteers for blood donation as demand for blood and blood products continues to rise, driven by various medical emergencies, surgeries, and ongoing treatments. By acknowledging blood donation as an intervention, we can take significant strides toward improving healthcare outcomes for millions of people worldwide.
References
Mwai, P. (2020, February 15). BBC.com. Retrieved from Why has Kenya been facing serious shortages of human blood?: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51458114
Walter, J. (2023, March 31). Marsabit grapples with blood shortage as locals consider donation, transfusion a taboo. Retrieved from nation.africa: https://nation.africa/kenya/health/marsabit-grapples-with-blood-shortage-as-locals-consider-donation-transfusion-a-taboo--4176090
Photo by Nguyễn Hiệp on Unsplash
