Access to safe and sustainable blood supply forms the cornerstone of safe and sustainable healthcare in India, and the healthcare policy in India is reflective of that. The Indian Government is working towards achieving Universal Health care for all its citizens by the year 2030, primarily by ensuring that everybody has access to quality healthcare services. This includes access to safe blood that is bereft of transfusion transmitted infections, and is stored with optimum care under optimal conditions.
Universal and timely access to safe blood can help save the lives of millions of people across the world, in addition to improving their health. Thus it is imperative to ensure that everybody has access to safe and adequate blood in order to ensure quality patient care and prevent the loss of lives.
According to the World Health Organization, all the processes entailed in the collection, testing, storage and distribution of blood necessitates effective organization and blood supply networks in order to ensure consistency in the quality and availability of blood. It is imperative that all the blood that is donated by blood donors be screened thoroughly for infections prior to being used in order to negate the transmission of infections including Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HIV and Syphilis.
Healthcare Policy in India: National Blood Policy
India’s National Blood Policy seeks to ensure easy accessible and adequate supply of pure and safe blood and blood components that is procured from a voluntary blood donor in sanitized and well equipped premises in order to negate the possibility of transfusion transmitted infections. The blood is also required to be stored and transported under optimal conditions. It is also mandatory to conduct blood transfusion under the guidance and supervision of trained personnel for those in need, irrespective of their financial, social status.
The Government of India is undertaking a plethora of measures to ensure blood safety and blood availability for citizens in dire need. Through its health policy and programmes in India the government is investing resources to develop and restructure the blood testing and blood transfusion services.
The government is also committed to using the latest technology for blood transfusion services, arranging awareness drives to remove the misconceptions pertaining to the donation of blood among the masses in addition to ensuring an adequate supply of safe blood. It also aims to encourage research on Transfusion Medicine.
Steps to Ensure Blood safety and Availability
The health policy and programmes in India includes a plethora of measures to ensure easy and universal access to safe blood in order to meet the healthcare requirements of its citizens. This includes establishing a national blood system for blood transfusion services, introduction of ethical blood policies, ensuring adequate and timely supply of safe blood to those in need, screening of blood donors to prevent infections, blood compatibility tests, good transfusion practices, blood management of patients, training of staff, quality assessment among other things.
Smile Foundation and Healthcare
Smile Foundation realising the need for accessible and quality healthcare for all runs a campaign ‘Health Cannot Wait’ is trying to provide people from the lower-income sections of the society access to affordable healthcare, preventive medicine, health emergency preparedness and support at their doorstep across urban slums and rural pockets of India. Healthcare must reach to all is one of our strongest beliefs.
