The Hindu 15.06.2010
Mayor inaugurates blood donation camp
Staff Reporter
| She is a ‘walk-in blood donor,’ says Vijasri Blood Bank medical officer |
PHOTO: CH.VIJAYA BHASKAR 
Taking the lead:Mayor M.V.Ratnabindu at a blood donation camp organised jointly by The Hindu and Vijayasri Blood Bank in Vijayawada on Monday.
VIJAYAWADA: Mayor M.V. Ratna Bindu inaugurated blood donation camp jointly organised by The Hindu and Vijayasri Blood Bank here on Monday. The camp was organised to celebrate the World Blood Donor Day. The celebration began with a rally that was flagged off by City Police Commissioner P.S.R. Anjaneyulu.
Visibly impressed with the objective of the campaign, the Mayor geared up to donate blood at the camp. But, the doctors at the camp said ‘No’ as she donated blood just a month ago. Mr. Anjaneyulu said: “I could have donated blood here, but for the fact that just a month ago I donated blood.” Vijayasri Blood Bank medical officer T. Gopala Krishna Murthy recollected that Ms. Ratna Bindu was a “walk-in blood donor”. The Mayor said the message of voluntary blood donation had to be conveyed to a large number of people, so that voluntary blood donation could become a mass movement. The Hindu Senior Deputy Regional Manager V. Raja Rao and his team were first to occupy the slots for the blood donation.
The youth that participated in the rally eagerly waited for their turn to donate the blood.
They answered the administrative nurse’s queries about their age, height, and weight, while another nurse applied disinfectant to their right arm and inserted needle. As the sachets were filled with 300 ml, the needles were removed, and the blood bank staff served the donors snacks and soft drinks. And, within no time they were back to their work.
The people have lot of inhibitions regarding blood donation. They feel that blood donation would make the donor feeble and weak, while some fear that blood donation leads to impotency. But, these are sheer apprehensions, said Mr. Gopalakrishna.
The bar is that there is a gap of three months between each donation, and those who give blood should not have received blood that year, should not have taken anti-rabies injection and should not have undergone a major surgery.
Use of whole blood was a passé as the patients were overloaded with unnecessary components in the blood. By making blood components, all the useful parts of blood can be used. In whole blood, platelets die and clotting factors become ineffective and the patient receives unwanted and ineffective components.
It would be useful for patients suffering from Thalassemia, haemophilia, chikun gunya and dengue fever, he explained.
