NBSZ holds blood donation procession

The National Blood Service Zimbabwe (NBSZ) is this Wednesday hosting a symbolic procession from Africa Unity Square to NBSZ offices in Harare, raising awareness about the lifesaving power of blood donation.

The event comes as the nation prepares to join the world in commemorating World Blood Donor Day on June 14.

This year’s commemorations are running under the theme, “Give Blood, Give Hope. Together We Save Lives.”

While Zimbabwe boasts one of the region’s highest blood collection rates of 5.6 units per 1000 population, it still falls short of the desired African Region target of 10 units.

Whole blood and its respective blood components are indispensable in today’s medical practice and their use is associated with significant costs.

Blood utilization and blood transfusion costs are generally perceived to be increasing at a time when healthcare budgets continue being constricted.

This may have far reaching consequences, particularly in resource limited settings where healthcare spending is mainly foreign funded.

A cost-activity based blood transfusion study was carried out at a large urban hospital in Harare, Zimbabwe on 100 patients prospectively.

The inclusion criteria took into consideration only pregnant women between the ages 15 and 50 years receiving blood transfusion.

Zwnews