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THE BLOOD CARE FOUNDATION Peace of Mind If you are travelling overseas on business, or are taking a well-earned
holiday, and you are involved in an accident, the treatment of which requires a
blood transfusion, would you know whether the blood provided in that particular
country met the standards of your national transfusion service? The problems
with having a transfusion overseas fall into three groups namely availability,
transfusion-transmitted diseases and the standards for testing blood donations.
By following a few simple steps, you can ensure that you and your family will
have peace of mind whilst you are abroad. Availability In many countries there is always an acute shortage of blood, far worse
than anything we ever have to face in Europe. When there are such acute
shortages, there is the ethical problem as to whether it is right for a
relatively affluent traveller, who has other options for obtaining blood, to
use up a local resource, thereby depriving a local resident whose need may be
greater. Transfusion transmitted diseases In many parts of the world the incidence of the common transfusion
transmitted diseases, such as HIV and hepatitis, is as much as 100 times higher
than in Europe. This means that a donated unit of blood is much more likely to
be infected. In addition, in some parts of the world there are prevalent
diseases which do not occur in Europe, but which can be transmitted by blood
transfusion. Examples of such diseases are malaria, Leishmaniasis, Chagar's
disease and filariasis. Testing In many countries, the health budget is insufficient to allow units of
donated blood to be fully tested. Be prepared Before leaving home, there are a number of things that you can do. - Blood Group. Have your blood grouped and make sure you take a copy
of the laboratory report with you. Knowing your blood group in advance will
allow appropriate blood to be more quickly obtained in an emergency.
- Medical Assistance. It is vital that you take out adequate health
insurance, which includes telephone support as well as emergency evacuation by
air ambulance if indicated.
- Blood Cover. It is also advisable to obtain cover from an
institution, which can provide screened blood.
In response to the difficulties in locating reliable sources of blood, and
with the active encouragement of the expatriate medical and residential
communities in Nigeria, a blood bank was established in Lagos in 1989 as a
pilot exercise. The experience gained in the international transportation,
importation and storage of blood, resuscitation fluids and sterile equipment
led, in 1991, to the establishment of the Blood Care Foundation. The Blood Care Foundation is a charitable organisation registered in
England, dedicated to provide, in emergency, screened blood, obtained from
internationally recognised sources, resuscitation fluids and sterile
transfusion equipment to its members in countries where these are not readily
available. Should an emergency occur, one of the Foundation's alarm centres is
contacted. The Duty Medical Officer (DMO) in the alarm centre will contact the
treating physician to identify the transfusion requirements. If required, the
DMO will arrange for the provision of resuscitation fluids from an RSP and for
a courier to take blood to the patient. Today the Foundation operates a global
network of blood banks, enabling it to provide whole blood, to almost any
location in the world within 12 hours, subject to the availability of scheduled
air services. The couriers are doctors or paramedics, trained in
cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, and are capable of putting up a transfusion,
even in the shocked patient. These are a few examples of calls, which have been received. A road traffic
accident in West Africa, required the patient to have an amputation of one leg
and major surgery on the other. A lady in Central America, with an unusual
blood group, had a massive bleed following the birth of her child. A person in
Eastern Europe required a blood transfusion before being evacuated to his home
country for cancer surgery. The Foundation provides "Peace of Mind"
to over 8 million people on any day of the year. Why don't you join them? © The Blood Care Foundation |
