Blood bank in Ho Chi Minh City reduced 2,700 bags, what did the Director of Blood Transfusion

Thousands of blood bags reduced in reserve

On August 8, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health said that it recently chaired a meeting with the participation of the Cho Ray Hospital Blood Transfusion Center, the Ho Chi Minh City Blood Transfusion - Hematology Hospital and the Ho Chi Minh City Red Cross Society.

This meeting aims to assess the situation of blood reception and supply during the period when the health systems of Binh Duong province (old) and Ba Ria - Vung Tau (old) are merged into the health system of Ho Chi Minh City, as well as discuss and agree on a coordination plan to ensure blood supply for treatment facilities until the end of 2025.

According to reports from blood receiving units, recently there has been a decrease in the amount of donated blood, affecting the ability to store and supply blood for treatment.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Blood Transfusion and Hematology Hospital, without close coordination and increased blood donation in August and the following months, the amount of blood received can only meet 70-80% of the demand, directly affecting the treatment work at medical facilities in the area.

Specifically, according to statistics on blood receipt and distribution in July, the expected receipt schedule was 27,560 bags, but in reality, only more than 25,000 bags were received, a decrease of more than 2,500 bags compared to the plan.

Meanwhile, the amount of blood distributed was more than 27,600 bags, leading to the consequence that the blood reserve of Ho Chi Minh City is gradually decreasing from 9,427 bags (on July 1) to 6,713 bags (on July 31).

Faced with this reality, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health directed the Blood Transfusion - Hematology Hospital to proactively review, grasp the situation and develop a support plan, ready to coordinate with the Blood Transfusion Center of Cho Ray Hospital if necessary, to ensure blood supply for the entire Ho Chi Minh City health system.

The Department of Health also requested the People's Committees of wards, communes, and special zones to urgently establish a Steering Committee for voluntary blood donation.

At the same time, strengthen coordination with the Ho Chi Minh City Red Cross Society to promote communication and mobilize people to participate in voluntary blood donation to promptly supplement blood reserves from now until the end of 2025, according to the direction of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee.

What did the Director of Ho Chi Minh City Blood Transfusion and Hematology Hospital say?

Speaking to Dan Tri reporter, Dr. Phu Chi Dung, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Blood Transfusion and Hematology Hospital (where the largest blood bank in the South is located) said that the unit supplies blood to more than 160 medical facilities in Ho Chi Minh City and several other provinces.

Currently, the Blood Bank still provides a full range of blood products, ensuring the medical examination and treatment activities of hospitals and people. However, the reserve quantity of packed red blood cells prepared from whole blood has decreased recently.

According to Dr. Dung, since July 1, when Ho Chi Minh City and the whole country implemented the two-level government model, the blood source received at the Hospital has not changed much.

However, the blood supply from the Ho Chi Minh City Humanitarian Blood Donation Center (under the management of the Ho Chi Minh City Red Cross Society) has fluctuated, when many planned blood collection trips in old districts were canceled, because there are no longer district-level Red Cross Societies.

The amount of blood taken from this source accounts for over 50%, so it more or less affects the blood donation campaign.

The Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Blood Transfusion and Hematology Hospital proposed that the city-level Blood Donation Mobilization Board be soon reorganized, that previously planned blood donation campaigns be kept intact, and that there be a plan for the last 5 months of the year, so that the blood reserve target for the year is guaranteed.

In addition, because the two provinces of Ba Ria - Vung Tau and Binh Duong (old) have merged into Ho Chi Minh City, the blood supply needed, especially in emergency cases, has also increased.

Based on the actual situation, the Blood Transfusion - Hematology Hospital has sent a document to collect the needs of hospitals in the two above mentioned areas, to urgently implement a plan to meet the additional amount of blood products needed.

Based on the proposal of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee has approved the plan for the Blood Transfusion Center of Cho Ray Hospital to continue to assume the role of a focal point for supplying blood and blood products for regions 2 and 3 (formerly Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau) until December 31, according to the plan set out at the beginning of the year.

At the same time, the Department of Health is assigned to organize and coordinate blood reception and distribution activities in accordance with the actual needs and operational capabilities of the units.

The Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee also directed localities to continue to effectively implement voluntary blood donation mobilization, strengthen the Steering Committee at the grassroots level, and closely coordinate with the Ho Chi Minh City Humanitarian Blood Donation Center to maintain a stable schedule of voluntary blood donation and blood collection, without interruption during the system restructuring period.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/kho-mau-o-tphcm-giam-2700-tui-giam-doc-bv-truyen-mau-huyet-hoc-noi-gi-20250808092250118.htm