Residents in Bungoma County have been asked to donate blood to save lives in hospitals.
Dr Dickens Lubanga, a paediatrician at Bungoma County Referral Hospital (BCRH) has said that the lack of blood testing kits in Bungoma health facilities has also hurt blood testing.
He says that Bungoma depends on Kakamega, Eldoret and Kisumu for blood screening services before the donated blood is transfused to patients.
Lubanga says that the chance of contracting diseases during blood transfusions is heightened when blood does not undergo proper screening, pointing out that screening of blood in such cases is a necessity that should not be compromised in any way.
Lubanga adds that Bungoma is also in dire need of blood due to huge numbers of sickle cell and haemophilia patients.
In an interview with the Star on Thursday, Dr Lubanga encouraged locals to turn up in large numbers and donate blood saying that many patients die in hospitals due to lack of blood.
“Women at the maternity wards, those involved in grisly road accidents and sickle patients need an urgent blood transfusion to save their lives,” Lubanga said.
In addition, Lubanga called on those seeking partners to marry to visit health facilities and get tested for the sickle trait before making a decision.
To control the rampant sickle cell cases in the region, Lubanga asked men to marry from outside the region noting that the Western and Nyanza region has high numbers of sickle cell cases.
He added that almost half of the collected blood in Bungoma is given to sickle cell patients.
Lubanga, however, called on Bungoma governor Ken Lusaka and health and sanitation CEC Dr Antony Wamalwa to ensure that the blood satellite that was launched a long time ago is completed and equipped so that doctors don’t find it hard to screen blood before it is given to patients.
“Blood needs to be screened to detect HIV/AIDS, hepatitis among other disease contents before it is given to other patients,” he said, noting that specialists at Eldoret screening centre sometimes get overwhelmed to screen blood from Bungoma risking losing patients.
Dr Lubanga said that he has donated blood ten times in his entire lifetime arguing that he has decided so because he has lost patients in his own hands.
“I decided to become the champion of blood drives here in Bungoma and outside because I have witnessed patients die in my hands because of lack of blood, therefore I will continue advocating for it,” he said.
He lauded private within Bungoma for adhering to the call and supporting the blood drive exercise.
Bungoma County Health and Sanitation CEC Dr Andrew Wamalwa said Bungoma is facing a crisis due to lack of blood screening services that has hurt service delivery in most of the facilities.
Wamalwa added that sickle cell patients need blood every now and then, noting that they are transfused three to four times a month.
