Blood Transfusion In Sri Lanka
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Blood transfusion Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's Circulatory system, circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used for various medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood. Early transfusions used ...
was first performed in
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
in late 1950. It became more widely known to the public in 1959 after the assassination of
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike (8 January 1899 – 26 September 1959), also known as "The Silver Bell of Asia" (ආසියාවේ රිදී සීනුව), was a Sri Lankan statesman who served as the fourth Prime Minister of ...
, when an appeal was made to the public to donate blood. The country's
blood bank A blood bank is a center where blood gathered as a result of blood donation is stored and preserved for later use in blood transfusion. The term "blood bank" typically refers to a department of a hospital usually within a clinical pathology labora ...
system has since expanded from a single initial site to multiple blood donation centres and laboratories nationwide, operating under the auspices of the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS). As of 2014, the NBTS collects over 350,000 voluntary blood donations every year.


History

Initially, there was only one blood bank in Sri Lanka, confined to a room close to the surgical unit of the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL). In 1960, the NHSL blood bank was shifted to its current building, near the hospital's main entrance. In 1967, a "red donor booklet" was introduced as a certificate for free blood donors. Other donors were paid a minimum of 10
rupees Rupee (, ) is the common name for the currencies of India, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, and of former currencies of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (as the Gulf rupee), British East Afr ...
for each donation. In 1968, the blood bank was semi-decentralized under the Sri Lankan Ministry of Health and placed under the direction of a superintendent blood transfusion service. It had a staff of 124 at that time. In 1979, paid donation was discontinued and voluntary donation was encouraged to ensure the safety of collected blood. In 1980, the number of hospital-based blood banks reached 20, and 12 emergency bleeding centres were also established. Mobile blood donation programs were initiated with two mobile blood collection teams. By 1982, volunteer non-remunerated blood donations accounted for 97% of all transfusions, and the "Anti A1"
reagent In chemistry, a reagent ( ) or analytical reagent is a substance or compound added to a system to cause a chemical reaction, or test if one occurs. The terms ''reactant'' and ''reagent'' are often used interchangeably, but reactant specifies a ...
was manufactured for the first time in Sri Lanka using kollu seeds. In 1985, disposable plastic bags were introduced to all Sri Lankan blood banks. Screening of blood for
hepatitis B Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the '' hepatitis B virus'' (HBV) that affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. It can cause both acute and chronic infection. Many people have no symptoms during an initial infection. ...
was initiated. In 1987, the emergence of
AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
led to the introduction of screening of all collected blood for
HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...
1 and 2 antibodies. In 1988, the Central Blood Bank's component laboratory facility was extended to some of the larger blood banks (
Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...
North and
Kandy Kandy (, ; , ) is a major city located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka, Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese monarchy from 1469 to 1818, under the Kingdom of Kandy. The city is situated in the midst of ...
). In 1990, the component laboratory facility was further extended to blood banks at Karapitiya,
Kurunegala Kurunegala (, ; , ) is a major city in Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of the North Western Province, Sri Lanka, North Western Province and the Kurunegala District. Kurunegala was an ancient royal capital for 50 years, from the end of the 13th ...
, CI
Maharagama Maharagama is an outer suburb of Colombo, Sri Lanka on the High-Level (A4) Road about from the centre of the commercial capital. It developed rapidly in the 1980s as a dormitory suburb. Governed by the Maharagama Urban Council, the town possesses ...
,
Peradeniya Peradeniya (; ) is a suburb of the city of Kandy, Sri Lanka with about 30,000 inhabitants. It is situated on the A1 main road, a few kilometres west of Kandy city centre. Peradeniya's name is derived from ''pera'' (guava) and ''deniya'' (a plain ...
,
Anuradhapura Anuradhapura (, ; , ) is a major city located in the north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central Province, Sri Lanka, North Central Province and the capital of Anuradhapura District. The city lies north of the cur ...
, Matara and
Badulla Badulla (, ; ,) is the capital and the largest city of Uva Province situated in the central hills of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of Uva Province and the Badulla District. Geography Badulla is located in the southeast of Kandy, almost enci ...
. By this time there were 32 blood banks and 10 emergency bleeding centres. The Central Blood Bank functioned as the training centre for medical and paramedical personnel of the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS). In 1999, the headquarters of the NBTS were established at the National Blood Centre, absorbing most of the vital laboratories and the majority of the staff from the Central Blood Bank. The NBTS thus became a fully
decentralized Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those related to planning and decision-making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group and gi ...
unit. In 2009, a distributed network of cluster centres was established, and more authority was given to these cluster centres for effective delivery of blood collection and transfusion services to various parts of the country. In 2012, the
Anura Bandaranaike Anura Bandaranaike (15 February 1949 – 16 March 2008) was a Sri Lankan politician, who served as Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka (2000-2001) and Leader of the Opposition (1983–1988). He held several cabinet ministries: as Foreig ...
Memorial Blood Bank was opened in Wathupitiwela. In June 2014, Sri Lanka hosted the World Blood Donor Day, with the theme "Safe Blood for Saving Mothers".


References


External links

* of the NBTS {{DEFAULTSORT:Blood transfusion in Sri Lanka Healthcare in Sri Lanka Blood donation Blood banks