How Covid restrictions are worsening blood shortages in Kisumu
A woman donating blood. The shortage of blood in Kisumu hospitals has been worsened by the ongoing Covid-19 restrictions.
Patients in Kisumu County who need blood transfusions are grappling with an acute and persistent shortage.
The situation has been worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has strained healthcare systems across the country.
Winnie Atieno, a patient at Kombewa Sub-County Hospital, is among those affected by the crisis. She needs blood type O- (negative) and is depending on well-wishers.
The hospital is running out of blood and doctors asked the patient’s brother, Bush Nyang, to get a donor.
“I had to go to social media to get potential blood donors. I received three pints that were compatible with my sister’s blood group,” he said.
Another patient, Appoline Odera, is being treated at Aga Khan Hospital and needs blood type O+. Her family and friends took to social media to appeal for help.
Blood bank collapsed
Aga Khan Hospital’s director, Dr Patrick Eshiwani, said Kisumu has faced acute blood shortages for the past three years.
“Since the blood bank collapsed in Kisumu, there’s no blood. Patients have to depend on relatives for blood donations,” he said.
An officer at the regional blood transfusion centre disclosed that the lab had run out of required reagents.
Reagents are used in detecting and identifying a variety of blood group antibodies. This means the blood they receive must be sent to Nairobi to determine the various blood groups.
Kisumu Health Executive Boaz Nyunya said blood shortages are a complex issue.
He noted that the regional blood transfusion centre relies on donors in schools, colleges and universities for supplies.
“We have to mobilise stakeholders from different spheres to get more blood donations and strategise how to manage and store blood,” Prof Nyunya said.
US funding
The gradual withdrawal of the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar) funding since 2014 and the government’s failure to plug the resulting gap have caused a crisis in regional and satellite blood banks.
Funding for the Kenya National Blood Transfusion Service ceased last year.
The shortage of blood in regional and satellite centres has compelled some hospitals to run their own collections. Because the process is costly, hospitals pass on the costs to patients.
The Kisumu Blood Transfusion Centre has the capacity to store up to 5,000 units of blood but it currently has less than 400 units. Reduced funding has also curtailed outreach programmes.
One of the major contributors to the problem is the suspension of social gatherings due to restrictions imposed by the Ministry of Health to limit the transmission of Covid-19.
“When the coronavirus pandemic hit the country, gatherings (were) banned. We are working on a policy to have individuals donate regularly while observing Covid-19 guidelines,” Prof Nyunya said.
WHO’s recommended minimum
Last year, Kenya collected 164,000 units of blood against the World Health Organisation’s recommended minimum of one per cent of the population (480,000 units).
This is the bare minimum that WHO expects of Kenya’s population ratio against a maximum of 960,000 units per year.
Upon WHO recommendations, the government set up six regional blood banks 20 years ago to streamline the blood-collection process.
This led to a more structured collection, screening, storage and distribution of blood by the six banks in Nairobi, Embu, Nakuru, Mombasa, Eldoret and Kisumu.
The plan was heavily financed by Pepfar, which hoped the government would step in when the United States ended its funding.
