blood donation

So we know that giving blood saves lives but here it seems so much more immediate. (and they won’t take it is in the US for at least 6 months and probably at least a year after living in Africa). I got called on Wednesday evening that they were looking for B blood. I gave at the beginning of November and usually they don’t take within 3 months but they needed it and they check my health…HB-which is how much iron is in your blood, also for all the diseases—rapid tests…and it was ok…they thought about not taking a full donation but I figure if I have to get stuck with a needle they take the max so I don’t have to do it again too soon. A medical student from the guesthouse also came down with B blood to donate… found out the next day that my blood had been divided and saved two lives…and then the next day they used the rest and saved another life. So one donation and three children were helped.
It is hard here because we don’t have the facilities to keep blood for very long (power cuts don’t help). It is also hard to find donors. Of course there is superstition around giving blood and it will take lots of education and time to get through that. It might also be the fear of finding out the results of the disease tests. Even the educated find it hard to come and give blood. A patient attendant came in while I was giving and I tried to get him to give…he told me that next time I give he will too but that is at least three months away…Another way we try to keep blood is that every person who gets a transfusion is “required” to supply a donor to replace the blood. That person can be sometimes hard to find and we are finding that for a fee sometimes someone is writing that a donor was found even when it isn’t true.