TIMELY BLOOD THAT SAVED MANY LIVES
There are scores of true stories when the timely supply and transfusion of blood from the Indian Medical Association (IMA) Blood Bank of Uttarakhand saved lives. Here are three instances:
Meena Panwar, a resident of an obscure village in Tehri Garhwal gave birth to a baby girl. With negative blood and continuous hemorrhaging, her life hung on a thin thread. It was the availability of this rare blood at the IMA Bank that helped save her life.
Sanjay Kumar was always eager to donate blood but never could muster courage. At the instance of a friend, he donated blood at the IMA Blood Bank of Uttarakhand. It so happened that a few days later his father Ramesh Kumar got a rare bacterium in his stomach and bled internally for four days and could have died but for the timely multiple transfusions provided by the same IMA Bank. Now Ramesh is a regular donor.
Jeevan, a student of University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehra Dun, survived a motorcycle accident that had left him with a critical injury on his leg requiring multiple blood transfusions. It was again the IMA Blood Bank that provided the timely help. Today with a new jeevan, this young student is an ardent votary of voluntary blood donation.
Dr. Bhim S. Pandhi and some of his colleagues at the Indian Medical Association have had a dream of setting up a world class Blood Bank in Uttarakhand. They got together, deliberated over the nitty-gritty and complexities of establishing a top-of-the-class Blood Bank. Problems were enormous and resources limited; yet their combined determination eventually overcame all the hurdles, and a blueprint of the proposed Blood Bank was prepared. That was in 2003. “Prior to our Blood Bank, there were hardly a dozen banks in India that worked on the premise of voluntary blood donation. In this respect, ours is a path breaking entity; until then, there was no blood bank as such anywhere in the state, and those needing blood transfusion and their relatives often found themselves in a cul-de-sac,” now recalls Pandhi.
All that changed in a wholesome manner when the IMA Blood Bank of Uttarakhand was formally inaugurated on 30 May, 2006. The façade of the Blood Bank building with its exquisite interiors gladdened the heart of the chief guest, the Vice President of India Bhairon Singh Shekhawat. The state-of-art equipment installed at the Bank left everybody wonderstruck. The Blood Bank had been imaginatively conceived and meticulously executed as “top-of-the-class” institution so much so that at its very first Founder’s Day function in 2007, it was declared “as the biggest project ever undertaken by any IMA branch in the country”. The Bank management that comprised busy professional medicos spared neither effort nor funds to give a lovely shape to their dream. “It was a selfless and dedicated contribution by the members of its governing body,” says Dr. Alok Ahuja, who has been closely associated with the Bank.
The story of its birth and the years of infancy makes an inspiring and fascinating reading. Dehra Dun was the obvious choice as its location. Governor Sudarshan Aggarwal, who had had the rich experience of having established such a Blood Bank for Rotary International, blessed the project. The IMA Blood Bank Society of Uttarakhand was formally registered on 23 April, 2003.
ONGC donate land
Nearly 2000 square meters of prime land was required for the Bank, and land prices had already gone through the roof. With IMA at its wits’ end with no suitable land in sight, in walked the late Subir Raha, the then CMD of ONGC. Saha’s coming was like that of a guardian angel. He made a gift to the IMA of 1800 square meters of land in proximity to ONGC’s Hospital. The foundation stone was formally laid on 5 November, 2003 and that kick-started the Bank.
The Plan thus prepared was ambitious enough but that degree of ambition was not matched by the available resources. The initial estimate about its cost was Rs. 25 millions. Some funds came through a “Jagjit Singh Nite”. These were further augmented by donations from societies, trusts and a few individuals including those from the medical fraternity. “But then it dawned upon us that the estimated amount would fall far short of the final cost if the Blood Bank was to be constructed as per the international standards equipped with hi-tech component separator facilities,” now recalls Dr. Rakesh Kalra. A MoU was entered into with the state government stipulating that it would underwrite all the expenses incurred on the construction of the building as also on the purchase of the equipment. An amount of over Rs. 10 millions was given for the first phase. Thereafter the state funding dried up, leaving the Blood Bank no option but to raise funds from other sources.
Ratan Tata Trust comes as a Knight Rider
It was at this stage that Sir Ratan Tata Trust of Mumbai (SRTT) came as a knight rider and helped the Blood Bank with a generous yearly donation of Rs. 10 millions. It has been paying this princely sum for the past three years. The only caveat was is that the Blood Bank would in turn locally raise one third of Tata’s donation. The Bank has been able to accomplish this condition. The donation envisaged “social marketing of voluntary blood donation” with a view to creating greater awareness on blood donation etc.
Running a top of the class blood bank is no child’s play. “We have a total staff of 62, three doctors – two MDs and one MBBS – besides several technicians. Our daily average processing is 100-110 units,” says Managing Director Dr. Umang Sahai. The Bank achieved stability in its very first year of operation with regard to blood donations and technical competence. Functioning round the clock, this ‘stand alone’ and ‘not for profit bank’ makes available the required group of blood to the recipient, and works on the principle of 100% voluntary donations. This is in conformity with the guidelines set forth in the National Blood Policy,” adds Dr. Sahai.
“There are only five major groups of blood. Negative group is the rarest and about only 5% of the population is believed to have negative blood”, explains Iva Chandola, a pathologist. Only 1% of the total population of country donates blood. India would become self sufficient in its requirement of blood if only about 5% of its population became donors of blood. Incidentally, there are nearly 50 volunteers who have donated blood 10 or more times. The Bank runs regular campaigns in conjunction with schools, colleges and numerous socio-cultural organizations, seeking blood donations. Some of these organizations have organized blood camps on numerous occasions with Sai Temple topping with 28 camps during fiscal 2010-11. Only individuals in the age group 18-65 are considered eligible for donation.
Over 100,000 units of blood collected till date
“In 2006, the Bank received 5,406 units of blood from May to Dec. The number of units of blood voluntarily donated rose to 11,285 and 13,585 in 2007 and 2008 respectively. There was a quantum jump in 2009 and 2010 when the Bank collected 19,262 and 22,529 units respectively. Up to September this year the Bank has already collected 18,469 units. Thus the Bank has so far collected more than 90,536 units of blood since its inception. The component issued during all these years are more than 100,000”, adds Robert Osmond, an IT specialist at the Blood Bank. This is indeed a remarkable achievement.
As against this, the Bank has provided over 100,000 components from May 2006 to September 30, 2011 to the recipients. The discount given to them till date (as on October 3, 2011) was worth over Rs. 10.7 millions.
The Bank has now attained an average monthly collection of 2000 units. It also makes 100% components, thereby providing blood component’s units to a larger number of patients than the number of blood units collected.