Mid-Day: Thane: Friday, 25 December 2015.
After an RTI filed by a doctor revealed that the
blood bank at Thane Civil Hospital had wasted around 138 litres of blood in the past
four years, the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO) issued a
notice to it over the irregularity. CDSCO officials issued a warning to control
the wastage or face strict action. Hospital authorities, however, said that
they have no control over how much blood is collected, or on the amount that
might be required, due to which excess is stored at all times, resulting in the
expiration of some stock.
The doctor
who had suspected blood wastage at the hospital, had filed the RTI query in
May. He had inquired about the total collection that took place from January
2011 to December 2014.
“Blood being
a life-saving resource, has to be used with utmost care. A blood bank collects
it through donation drives and individual donations. And every blood bank has
an estimated amount of blood used every month. If they have excess blood, they
need to immediately inform other civic or private blood banks and distribute
it, so that the needy can get it in time,” said the doctor.
While a
complaint was filed with the west zone of CDSCO, K Bangarurajan, deputy drugs
controller of the West Zone, pointed out the irregularity to FDA officials of
Konkan Region.
The Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) officials then issued the hospital officials a strict
warning about keeping a tab on the wastage. The same was communicated to the
CDSCO officials through a letter.
“A drug
control officer visited the blood bank after reviewing the complaint and an
explanation was demanded on why the blood was wasted. However, the explanation
given wasn’t satisfactory and hence a warning notice was issued to the blood
bank,” said the FDA officer.
Hospital
speak
Officials
from Thane Civil Hospital said they have no control over the wastage of blood,
as practically, it is not possible to predict the amount that needs to be
stored at all times.
“At no point
can we predict how much blood will be needed in the next one month. There can
be emergencies for which a hospital needs to be prepared at all times. This is
primarily the reason behind the expiry of blood. Secondly, we don’t have
control over how much blood will be collected through the drives. Due to this,
at times, we have excess at our disposal,” said M Kendre, Blood Bank Officer at
Thane Civil Hospital.
He said he
had told the FDA official the same thing. Another official said they try and
keep in touch with all blood banks, but at times when there is no demand, it
remains in the cold storage and ultimately expires.
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