At least 75 per cent of the blood units in the bank used to be collected from schools and other learning institutions. But the educational institutions have been closed since March 20, 2020, when the country disintegrated places with large gatherings, as one of the measures to contain the spread of coronavirus disease.
Dr. Sam Uringtho, the Director of Gulu Regional Blood Bank told URN in an interview that they are raising little blood because of the low turn up of blood donors. According to Uringtho, majority of their donors are secondary school students but because of high demand for blood, what they donate is not enough.
Dr. Venice Omona, the Head of Paediatric Department at Lacor Hospital told URN in an interview that his department is the most affected by the blood shortage in the Hospital, something that has led to the deaths of other children.
People with leukaemia, need periodic blood transfusions to ensure that the disease does not interfere with the normal production of red cells, white cells and platelets in the bone marrow. Medical treatment guidelines recommend that blood transfusion should be done on people with a blood count of 20 platelets.
Each year, more than 300,000 children aged below 19 are diagnosed with cancer around the world. Approximately 8 in 10 of these children live in low and middle-income countries where their survival rate is often near 20 percent. This is in stark contrast to high-income countries, where cure rates exceed 80 percent for many common childhood cancers.
According to an eye witness, unidentified gunmen shot the couple at around 8:40pm while walking to their home in Mwanjari trading center shortly after closing their Soda Depot in Kabale Central Market.
According to Masombo, his son started urinating blood and was rushed to a nearby clinic. He says the clinic referred him to Bugobelo Health center after failing to handle his condition.
Baligeya Stephen, the Senior Clinical Officer at the facility says that the hospital has an outstanding debt of 11 million Shillings accumulated over a period of two years. He says that the hospital cannot afford to pay utility bills off of its annual allocation of six million Shillings.
Evelyn Kusiima, a resident of Rusangura village in Bwijanga Sub County in Masindi district has been nursing her son at Masindi General Hospital for the past week. According to Kusiima, they had to travel to Hoima Regional Referral hospital to access blood, which was costly.
Dr. Sam Uringtho Uringi, the Director Gulu Regional Blood Bank, says more than the 30 health facilities in the region are in dire need of blood supply.
Uganda blood transfusion services under the ministry of health will construct a new blood dispatch centre at Jinja regional referral hospital in October 2012.
