Today is World Blood Donor Day, which celebrates the selfless efforts of unpaid donors who save lives every year. On this occasion, an alarming statistic has come to the surface, regarding the extremely low participation of women in blood donation in Lucknow.
According to data, there are only 2% women among blood donors in Lucknow. Prof. Tulika Chandra, the Head of Blood and Transfusion Medicine Department at KGMU, mentioned that out of the 300 units of blood donated at the center, only 5-6 have been given by women.
Haemoglobin deficiency identified as the major reason
Prof. Chandra further pointed out that the primary reason behind such low numbers is haemoglobin deficiency. Out of all the women that come to KGMU for donating blood, a whopping 90% are found to be deficient in haemoglobin.
Furthermore, the apprehension regarding donating blood is also talked about as a factor that discourages a lot of female participants. In order to encourage more voluntary participation, several camps and awareness drives are being conducted across Lucknow.
Increase in voluntary blood donors but still a long way to go
Voluntary blood donation in Lucknow and Uttar Pradesh, as a whole, has significantly improved in recent years. But the target of 100% is nowhere near in sight. Experts in the field believe that a focus on encouraging youngsters to donate blood is the way to go.
