Plasma donations yet to pick up at Ggm's lone plasma bank close to a month after launch

Gurugram: Close to a month after it was launched, Gurugram's lone plasma bank has not seen many recovered patients come forward to donate with official data showing that only 40 COVID-19 recovered patients had donated plasma at the bank as of Thursday evening. The plasma bank was opened in Gurugram's Sector 10-A area on July 31.

The District Health Department has been able to collect a total of 80 units of blood containing plasma from these volunteers.

Even though the District Health Department has set strict guidelines for the plasma donation, public officials concede that there has also been less participation among recovered patients to come forward and donate.

Of more than 11,000 cases reported in Gurugram to date, over 10,200 people have recovered.

Less participation by younger recovered patients had resulted in top public officials of Gurugram requesting patients to donate their plasma for the benefit of critical patients.

"The number of people coming forward and donating plasma is less but I am hopeful. On our part we are encouraging this initiative and also solving queries of the people related to plasma donation," said Amit Khatri, the Gurugram District Commissioner.

According to health officials, the sudden increase in the number of cases recently has also increased the number of hospitalised patients and this may help in more patients now volunteering to donate plasma.

"Fortunately there is less number of critical numbers of patients in Gurugram and fewer people are getting hospitalised. Starting from the third week of August there has been a sudden increase in the number of cases in which unfortunately the number of patients getting hospitalised has also increased. I believe now would be an appropriate time to come forward and donate plasma," said Dr Virender Yadav, Chief Medical Officer Gurugram Health Department.

While the convalescent plasma therapy right now is only for the residents of the Gurugram, officials have not ruled out the possibility of this therapy being also extended to other patients in Haryana. While Gurugram in the last few days has seen a decline in the number of cases, other districts of Haryana like Faridabad, Rewari, Rohtak and Yamuna Nagar are seeing large numbers of COVID-19 cases being reported. Right now, plasma therapy treatment is only available in Gurugram and Faridabad in the state.