NBSZ seeks to boost blood stocks
NATIONAL Blood Services Zimbabwe (NBSZ) is working round the clock to beef up blood stocks ahead of the Heroes and Defence Forces holidays.
In an interview with The Herald on the state of the blood bank ahead of the long weekend, NBSZ spokesperson Ms Esther Massundah said they were working flat out to ensure the national blood bank had adequate stocks for emergencies during the two-day holiday.
“As the blood bank, we are prepared to serve the nation during the holidays, which usually have the highest number of accident casualties who need blood transfusion,” said Ms Massundah.
The traditional blood donor drives carried out by NBSZ just before major public holidays were last week disrupted by the elections, resulting in the service embarking on a last minute bid to ensure the national blood stocks are adequate.
“It’s unfortunate the Pledge 25 blood donor drives in the capital were brought to a halt as people concentrated on the elections,” said Ms Massundah.
“We have since been working flat out to collect as much blood as possible before the Heroes and Defence Forces holidays. Other provinces and districts, however, managed to collect blood last week from youth donors, securing our stocks for the holidays across the country.”
NBSZ has also lined up several blood collection drives immediately after the public holidays to intensify donations and ensure satisfactory blood bank levels.
“The aim is to replace blood that might have been used during the holidays,” Ms Massundah.
“Previous campaigns have proved very useful and we are confident that this campaign will be a success.”
Ms Massundah said despite the campaigns, current blood stocks were satisfactory to meet demand during the long weekend.
“We are going into the holidays with satisfactory stocks of blood and we hope we will be able to meet demand should any emergencies arise,” said Ms Massundah.
She said NBSZ also had enough stocks of blood group O, which usually has a high demand compared to other blood groups.
In Zimbabwe, the demand for blood transfusion normally rises during public holidays due to increased road accidents as people travel to different destinations and usually travel in groups for conventions and family gatherings.