World Blood Donor Day is not lesser than a Birthday or Mother's Day or indeed a festival. A birthday celebrates new life and Mother's Day makes us rejoice the birth giver, but a Blood Donation Day is a day for both- the one who gets a new life and the one who donates blood and gives a new life.
It is not lesser than a festive occasion which commemorates the 'new life' and 'new life giver'.
People come together to observe World Blood Donor Day every 14th of June for witnessing many super-heroes in the form of Blood Donors and encourage such events that promote humanity.
Introduction to World Blood Donor Day
What is World Blood Donor Day?
1. Introduction to World Blood Donor Day
Abbreviates as WBDD, World Blood Donor Day is one of the eight biggest global public health campaigns, which is annually celebrated all around the world on 14 June by many countries-
- To increase the awareness regarding the unmatched need for safe blood and various blood products
- To express gratitude with honor towards every blood donor for his life-saving gift of blood donation.
The other seven officially observed global public health campaigns are- World Health Day, World AIDS Day, World Tuberculosis Day, World No Tobacco Day, World Malaria Day, World Immunization Day, World Hepatitis Day.
The prime event of this humanitarian noble cause remains the blood donation camps at schools, hospitals, corporate offices, and other hired places. What students and what officials, people from every age-groups, background, societies, and professions participate as managers, organizers, or volunteers for the success of the event.
People also prepare the plays, compositions, dance, and other artistic performances to attract people and generate awareness about the gap of need and supply of blood in hospitals.
The participants are also motivated by transportation facility, refreshment, energy drink and fruits, and certificate for the donation of blood.
2. Date and Time of National Blood Donation Day Observance
When National Blood Donation Day is held?
World Blood Donor Day is celebrated every June 14 of the year. Those institutes, official entities, and other organizers who take the responsibility of arranging the World Blood Donor Day events, campaigns, and drives, they begin their preparation around one week or one month ago. The day of the event, June 14 is the day when all that hard work is witnessed by the attendees. The event flows from morning to evening.
3. History of Blood Donation Day in India
When India started celebrating National Blood Donation Day?
Why Blood Donation Day is observed? Who initiated this?
How this started as a campaign?
World Blood Donor Day celebration date, 14 June also reminds of the birthday of Karl Landsteiner, a Nobel Prize holder scientist who was behind the discovery of the ABO blood group system.
Landsteiner successfully discovered three blood groups and labeled them as C. They were — Group A, B, and O. Other than distinguishing the major blood groups, he also developed the blood classification system of the modern era.
Karl researched and also made it known that if the blood of two people with the same blood groups comes in contact, it doesn't destruct the blood cells. Thus he found out that blood transfusion between people with the same blood group is possible.
4. Place of Blood Donation Day Celebration: Blood Banks in India
What is the prime location of Blood Donation events?
5. Blood Donation or Blood Selling for Money
Can one sell his blood? Is Blood Donation or Blood Selling for Money Illegal?
Yes, it is illegal. Under the National Blood Transfusion Services Act 2007, Blood and monitory exchange might result in a prison of up to 3 months and a fine for the convicted person.
6. Eligibility Criteria for Blood Donor
Who can donate blood?
Is there any guideline or several eligibility parameters for donating blood?
Only the one who passes the eligibility criteria as per the guidelines set by the Ministry of Health, Government of India, can donate blood.
As per that, the eligibility criteria for a blood donor for donating blood are as follows:
Age and Weight
The blood donor must be between 18 to 65 years of age and must have at least 50 kg of weight.
Overall Health
The blood donor must be healthy and physically fit. The donor must not have any transmittable diseases which can make the receiver suffer from the same disease.
Pulse Rate
The pulse rate of a blood donor must be regular, and from 50 to 100. A person with an irregular pulse rate cannot donate blood.
Blood Pressure
For BP- Diastolic: 50 to 100 mm Hg, and Systolic: 100 to 180 mm Hg.
Body Temperature
The person who is donating blood must have a normal body temperature and the donor’s oral temperature must not exceed 37.5 degrees C.
Hemoglobin
The level of hemoglobin must be at least 12.5 g/dL.
Time Period of Blood Donation
The gap of successive blood donation by a donor must be more than 3 months.
Other Guideline
There are some other common technical and medical guidelines are also there which a doctor follows such as the blood group of a donor must match the transferring criteria.
7. Ineligibility Criteria for Blood Donor
Who cannot donate blood?
Is there any guideline or several ineligibility parameters for donating blood?
There are also certain ineligibility criteria for a person willing to donate blood, which is as follows:
HIV Positive
A person tested with HIV Positive cannot donate the blood.
Ailments Suffers
A person diagnosed with ailments such as blood cancer, pressure, diabetes, cardiac arrest, hypertension, epilepsy, and kidney ailments cannot become a blood donor.
Rabies and Vaccine
A person treated for rabies or given Hepatitis B vaccine is considered ineligible for blood donation.
People with Disorders
People who have had disorders like fits, allergies, asthma, or tuberculosis in past cannot donate their blood to someone needy.
Women in Specific Conditions
- Pregnant or Breastfeeding Women
- Those who had a miscarriage recently in the past 6 months
Tattoo or Piercing
If a person has marked a tattoo or undergone body piercing or ear piercing in the past 6 months, it comes under ineligibility conditions.
Surgery, Medical Procedure, Immunization
The individuals, who have undergone general surgery, major dental procedure, or immunization in the time period of the past 1 month, cannot donate.
Alcohol
People who have consumed alcohol in past one day or 24 hours are considered ineligible.
8. Criteria for System Arranging Blood Donation
Government Regulations and Mechanism
Under which act Blood Bank activities are regulated?
Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940
Does a Blood Bank need any license for performing its activities?
Yes, it does. It also needs to renew the license timely for operations.
Who renews this license?
Drug Controller General
What are the conditions for the renewal of the Blood Bank license?
A Blood Bank must function in accordance with the terms of the license and must meet the specified standards regarding human resources or manpower, accommodation, process control, proper manufacturing practices, equipment, supplies, reagents, and all other matters which are supposed to be considered in Indian blood transfusion services.
Which system reviews the blood transfusion services in India?
- National Blood Transfusion Council, abbreviated as NBTC and established in January 1992, at the federal level
- State Blood Transfusion Councils, abbreviated as SBTC, for states
The above councils review the system and status of all the services related to blood transfusion all over India. They also manage the blood bank monitoring visits which are conducted annually.
Which policy is published for transfusion-related activities? What makes the donated blood and blood product transferring system sound?
National Blood Policy, abbreviated as NBP, keeps the commitment to the safety of blood and blood components intact.
It incorporates the strategies in the documents regarding:
- Ensuring the availability of the adequate resources
- Improvement in the technology and training related services
- Making the outline of methods for donor motivation and right clinical use of the blood
- Research and development work in the field of transfusion medicine
9. List of Top Blood Donation Organizers in India
Which organizations are the most active in supporting and organizing the Blood Donation Camps in India?
There are several governmental and non-governmental organizations that work at regional and local levels. They conduct awareness campaigns and camps for blood donation and other health-related causes.
Many organizations spread awareness and updates regarding blood donation events through their official websites and other web portals. These web spaces also provide the options for registration of a donor’s details and information about dates and locations of the blood donation camps.
Rotary Blood Bank
Established in Year: 2002
Based in: New Delhi
About: Associated with Rotary International and one of the largest active blood donation organizations, Rotary Blood Bank has several regional branches to operate the events and awareness campaigns.
Indian Red Cross Society
Established in Year: 1920
Based in: New Delhi
No. of Blood Banks in India: 166
About: Indian Red Cross Society is an active organization that conducts blood donation drives and programs through the Indian Red Cross Blood Bank.
BloodConnect Foundation
Established in Year: 2010 (By IIT Delhi alumni)
Based in: New Delhi
No. of cities in India: 20
About: BloodConnect Foundation is the largest non-profit organization in the field of blood donation which is run by the youth.
About BloodConnect: It is a volunteer team that is in many ace educational institutes like IIMs, IITs, PU, DU, etc. It works for conducting camps and awareness sessions on blood donation. It also extends its help 24/7 by a helpline.
Khoon Organization
Established in Year: 2016
Based in: Bengaluru
About: Khoon is the first helpline service that had run in Northeast India
Sankalp India Foundation
Established in Year: 2003
Based in: Bengaluru
About: Sankalp India Foundation is an organization that is specifically active in Karnataka.
Save Life India
Established in Year: 2014
Based in: Margao, Goa
About: Save life India is a project initiated by the Art of Living Foundation under Volunteer for a Better India. Initially, it was ignited in Goa but later started conducting donation camps in various states of India.
Lions Blood Bank
Established in Year: -
Based in: Chennai
About: Lions Blood Bank is a Lions club’s project which is in operation in many Indian cities.
Think Foundation
Established in Year: -
Based in: Mumbai
About: Think Foundation is active for:
- Patients who are suffering from thalassemia
- Prevention of thalassemia by check-ups
Athar Blood Bank
Established in Year: 2012
Based in: Solapur, Maharashtra
About: Athar Blood Bank was commenced by Athar Minorities Social and Welfare Association and has been active across the state.
Other Blood Donor Networks
There are many hospitals too that have their own blood banks. They conduct donation camps within their facilities.
10. Database and Networks
How the information about various donors is managed?
Some organizations like Indian Blood Donors, BloodConnect, Friends2Suppport, etc maintain the list of blood donors. This database proves useful to bridge the gaps between the blood donor and the hospital or organizations.
11. Statistics about Blood Collection
How much blood is donated by the donors in India?
Indians collectively donate about 350 milliliters of blood every year.
12. Statistics about Blood Donors
Statistics about Blood Donors
13. Blood Donation Related Statistics from past years
What are the statistics about the increase or decrease of blood donors in India?
14. Blood Donation Challenges
Blood Donation Challenges
Demand-Supply Gap
India has a huge population and millions of donors support by donating their blood, despite the healthcare facilities experience the gap between blood’s demand and supply.
Disparities in Access
Because of the access disparity issue, many areas see the wastage of the donated stock of blood in India. Unfortunately, at the same time, some parts of the country face blood shortage issues.
Substandard Medical Practices and Facilities
In some cases, the issues of infection or transmission of diseases such as AIDS are also found which is a vital issue.
Lack of Awareness
A case study and statistics conducted in 2011 revealed that only about 6% of women donate their blood. Surprisingly, most of them do not participate because of their physiological issues and low count of hemoglobin. Isn’t the reason more shocking?!
Fears Associated with Blood Donation
Many people feel afraid of the pain, weakness, or procedure. And this issue occurs with both literate and illiterate people.
Quality and Safety
On the basis of the study and research being done in 2009 and 2013, one more challenge came into light which was maintaining the quality and safety of the services regarding transfusion.
Volunteer Donor Vs Replacement Donors
About 70% of blood demand is fulfilled by volunteer Donors and the rest of the demand is fulfilled by replacement donors. About 62 countries are supplied with the blood by volunteer donors, not the replacement ones.
Forced Donation
In India, cases of forced donation are also being observed due to the disproportionate ratio of demand and supply of blood.
15. An Appeal: Let's Take a Step!
You also can become a "Hero"!
Blood donation is not just an act of giving blood. It is a heroic deed too, as a donor can save a life too. Not only this but there are also some benefits of donating blood.
Let us understand and spread the information that if a person is an eligible donor, the concerns of weakness and pain are just a state of mind.
And such concerns are very small in front of a ‘life’ that can be saved by a little effort.
So whenever we get an opportunity…
Let’s say bye to the creepy thoughts of pain and weakness!
Let’s be the hero and save a life!
Let’s wish ‘Happy Blood Donation’ to each other!
Donations of goods bring happiness, but the donation of blood brings lives.
