15/06/23
DANIELS O G
PHOTO SPEAK
LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT
MINISTRY OF HEALTH
PRESS RELEASE
WBDD: LAGOS TO SUBSIDIZE COST OF SCREENING OF BLOOD PRODUCTS
….Commemorates Y2023 World Blood Donor Day Celebration with Awareness Walk, Symposium
Lagos State Government is working out modalities to subsidize the high cost of screening of blood products to reduce the burden of cost incurred by healthcare providers, health facilities operators and members of the public, during blood transfusion process chain, the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu has said.
Governor Sanwo-Olu, who disclosed this today at a symposium and Scientific Conference organized by the Lagos State Blood Transfusion Service (LSBTS) to commemorate the Y2023 World Blood Donor Day in Lagos which held at the Adeyemi Bero Auditorium, explained that the cost of preparing a pint of blood for transfusion is a little too high for the public and healthcare providers to bear all alone.
The Governor who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Olusegun Ogboye disclosed that the LSBTS is currently working out the modalities for the subsidy, to reduce the cost incurred in the process of grouping and cross matching of blood products as well as and transfusion process which is usually incurred by health providers who screen blood, health facilities who transfuses blood and members of the public who requires blood products.
He said: “The challenge now is that the cost of preparing one pint of blood, including the grouping and cross matching that has to be done before transfusion is a little too high for the public to bear. So what is happening currently is that the people who are screening the blood and the hospitals that are transfusing the blood are bearing the extra cost, and they are complaining now about the extra cost.
“The Lagos Blood Transfusion Service is working on finding a way to get government to pay the difference, so that the heavier cost is not transferred to the patients and that the health care providers that is grouping and cross matching the blood also does not keep losing money on each pint of blood that they have to transfuse. So we are working on a fair amount for the government to bear to ensure that blood is still fully available for people that require blood transfusion as at when they need it”.
Sanwo-Olu explained further that the Lagos State Government through the LSBTS is committed to ensuring wholesomeness and quality assurance in the blood supply and transfusion chain in the state adding that the State government will not relent in ensuring the availability and of healthy blood products for clinical use
health facilities stressing that subsidizing cost of screening of blood product will ease burden of cost and increase accessibility of blood products.
He noted that the Y2023 World Blood Donor Day themed, “Give Blood, Give Plasma, Share Life, Share Often”, is well thought out as it lends credence to the need for continuous and regular awareness on the importance of voluntary blood donation to meet the blood needs of the community. He added that voluntary blood donors should always be honored and appreciated because the act of blood donation can be likened to donating an organ for transplant.
“The theme of this year’s World Blood Donor Day Celebration is “give blood, give plasma, share life and share often. I personally believe that there must be a special place in God’s heart for the people who actually give blood. In a way it is like giving an organ for transplant every time”, He said.
The Governor encouraged members of the public to donate blood regularly explaining that blood is an organ the replaces itself quickly without having a negative impact on the health of the donors adding that the benefit of donating blood cannot be overemphasized particularly the realization that blood donation can be the difference between life and death for someone who requires it.
“Blood is an organ that replaces itself very quickly so it is always available for you to give again and again and it does not do you any harm but it can be the difference between life and death for other people”, He said.
He assured that his administration will not relent in putting in place strategies and policies geared towards ensuring that blood and blood products are always available at all times to those who require them and are transfused in line with best practices.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary, Lagos State Blood Transfusion Service, Dr. Bodurin Osikomaiya explained that the Y2023 World Blood Donor Day Celebration reaffirms the commitment of the present administration to a brighter future in the provision of adequate blood products in the state. She noted that the commemoration of World Blood Donor Day creates a platform and provides an opportunity to address challenges around blood transfusion services in the state in order to create an enabling environment that supports blood transfusion.
Dr. Osikomaiya commended all voluntary blood donors stressing that the gift of blood offers the gift of life which can extend a lifeline of those who are battling illness or facing challenging medical and unforeseen emergencies adding that their generosity have given hope and renewed hope of life to numerous patients.
On this World Blood Donor Day, by embracing the theme of “Give Blood, Give Plasma, Share Life, Share Often,” we reaffirm our commitment to a brighter future, where no life is lost due to a shortage of blood or plasma. It is also an opportunity to address our challenges and create an enabling environment that encourages and supports blood donation”, She said.
She assured that the Lagos State Blood Transfusion Services will continue to create awareness on the benefits of voluntary blood donation so as to dispel myths, implement safe protocols and continue to create innovative ways of improving the voluntary blood donation pool.
Professor Adedoyin Dosumu, a Consultant Hematologist who was the Keynote Lecturer at the symposium stressed the importance of putting in place hospitable and comfortable blood donor clinics to encourage and impress voluntary blood donors.
“We need to put our donor clinic in order, make it as comfortable as a five star hotel so that when they come they have hospitality and they will be impressed to come back again”, He said.
Professor Dosumu however advised that the State should be looking at extending its blood donation drive by educating Primary School pupils as well as students in Secondary Schools on voluntary blood donation as a universal education to prepare them to be future blood donors.
Earlier, stakeholders in the blood transfusion chain, development and supporting partners including the officials of LSBTS, World Health Organization (WHO), Nigerian Red Cross Society, Association of Nigerian Medical Private Practitioners (ANPMP) and some blood donors held an awareness walk in around Lagos State Government Secretariat as part of activities to commemorate the Y2023 World Blood Donor Day in Lagos State.
Signed
Tunbosun Ogunbanwo
Director Public Affairs
14th June, 2023
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