International Journal of Physiology
  • Year: 2016
  • Volume: 4
  • Issue: 1

Pre-donor Haemovigilance: Evaluation of Community Limiting Factors for Blood Donation to Frame Better Transfusion Policies to Increase Blood Availability

  • Author:
  • Mohd Amir1, Mohammed Imran2, Humaira Naqvi3,, Pawan Singh4, Muzaffar Zaman5, A Mushtaque Shah6
  • Total Page Count: 6
  • Page Number: 149 to 154

1Lecturer, Department of Physiology, Hamdard Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi

2Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Shaheed Hasan Khan Mewati Government Medical College, Nalhar, Nuh, Mewat, Haryana

3Clinical Registrar, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi

4Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, Shaheed Hasan Khan Mewati Government Medical College, Nalhar, Nuh, Mewat, Haryana

5Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery, Maharishi Markandeshwar Medical College and Hospital, Kumarhatti, Solan, Himachal Pradesh

6Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Maharishi Markandeshwar Medical College and Hospital, Kumarhatti, Solan, Himachal Pradesh

*Corresponding auther-Humaira Naqvi Clinical Registrar, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi, Email ID humairanaqvi82@yahoo.co.in

Online published on 11 February, 2016.

Abstract

The healthcare delivery in surgical as well as medical departments of the hospital depends on the availability of appropriate blood units. These are indispensible for survival in majority of critical patients especially road traffic accidents, surgery and obstetrics departments. The safest blood comes from the voluntary blood donors. In some societies, preoccupied misconceptions or apprehensions drastically limit the blood donation behaviour and cause shortage of safe blood units in the blood banks of the hospitals. Understanding these perceptions in the catchment population may help in framing better transfusion policies for the targeted community. Our study evaluated the prevalence of the apprehensions of adverse events due to blood donation as the limiting factors modifying the blood donation attitude in rural population of Mewat, Haryana.

A community based one-time cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted where 300 randomly selected participants above 18 years of age were taken. The questionnaire in Hindi and English were provided to the subjects to mark the pre-framed 15 choices along with a blank space which was left to write any other comments if there are any. The descriptive statistics and graphs were done with the help of Microsoft Excel 2010.

The irreversible weakness of strength that would never be regained was perceived by 74% respondents. Whereas 19%, 13% and 6% reported irreversible deficit of blood, lack of knowledge or awareness and donation related pain due to prick respectively as limiting factors for the blood donation.

The pre-occupied misconceptions are strong perceptions of adverse events such as an irreversible weakness for entire life, irreparable deficit of blood and fear of pain due to prick during blood donation in the target population. Thus education and community counselling through pre-donor haemovigilance is crucial to allay the fear and frame the transfusion policies in target populations.

Keywords

Pre-donor Haemovigilance, Adverse events, Transfusion policies, Voluntary blood donation