By Felicia Imohimi
Abuja, – A non-profit organisation, Safe Blood for Africa Foundation, has called on the Federal Government to establish a legal framework on Blood Transfusion Service.
Dr Idris Saliu, the Country Director of the organisation, made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.
Saliu explained that the legal framework would ensure centralised blood services rather than segmented, as well as safety and easy access to blood by the populace.
“With the legal framework in place, every unit of blood that is donated into a central blood system belongs to every Nigerian and it can be accessed by any Nigerian that needs it as and at when necessary.
“So, we need to have a legal framework that says this is what we practice in this country; without that legislation the practice will continue to be segmented, uncentralised with difference in practice,’’ he noted.
Saliu frowned at the segmented blood services in the country, describing it as patient-driven, adding that such services gave room for lots of practices that are contrary to good blood donation.
The country director noted that Nigeria was signatory to the World Health Assembly reformation in 1975 that it would establish National Blood Service based on voluntary, non-remunerated blood donation.
He said that, however, this had not been implemented till date.
“We cannot say that nothing has been done because hospitals have on their own initiative started to do more than what they are established for; and they have blood banks but these blood banks are patient-driven.
“Somebody has to be sick before you ask people to come and donate blood.
“Also, they do not have the resources that will make them create a department for collecting blood and even if they do, there is no blood centre to store it,’’ Saliu said.
Saliu noted that presently the country had five tiers of blood transmission services ranging from teaching hospitals, which he described as intended meeting standard, specialist and state general hospitals.
He further identified other tiers of blood services as emanating from private practice, which, he alleged, could be surrounded by cutting corners.
According to him, the fifth tier is the commercial blood donors, adding that these donors are very dynamic.
The country director observed that these donors engage in practices that are not consistent with good blood donation practice.
“For example, a person who knows that or who has seen the instruments that are used in blood banks in hospitals what they do is to go and take two bottles of stout and they urinate overnight.
“So, when they come even though they are not fit to donate they will be dehydrated then when you take their blood it will give you the level that you are supposed to get ordinarily for a fit donor.
“So, if you are supposed to have a PCV of 40 but in actual fact yesterday his PCV was 28, which he wouldn’t have passed but because of this dynamics he will now come and donate blood in that hospital.
“But if you have a centralised blood service where it is voluntary, nobody will go and take all sort of things because the only reason that person is doing that is because donation is commercial.
“Blood from voluntary donors are safer, they are the best and unless you have a command and rule from government to establish it, it will not happen, that is why it is so vital that you have a legislation,’’ Saliu stressed.