Global Disparities in the Blood Management System: Challenges and Solutions

Global Disparities in the Blood Management System: Challenges and Solutions 4 Jan 2024

Global Disparities in the Blood Management System: Challenges and Solutions

Context: This editorial is based on the news “The blood management system needs a fresh infusion which was published in the Hindu. A recent report by the World Health Organization (WHO) has brought attention to the global disparities in blood management system.

Relevancy for Prelims: Blood Donation, World Health Organization (WHO), Stem Cell Therapy, and Sickle Cell Disease

Relevancy for Mains: Blood Management System, Global disparities in Blood Collection- Challenges and Steps that need to be Taken.

Significance of Blood

  • Blood and its various products play a crucial role in a number of medical scenarios, which includes scheduled surgeries, emergency procedures, as well as in the treatment of conditions such as cancer, thalassemia, and postpartum haemorrhage (PPH). 

Challenges of the Blood Management System 

  • Global Disparities in Blood Management System: Despite having 14% of the global population, countries in the WHO African region could only collect 5% of the global donations. 
    • Comparable patterns emerged in low-income and lower-middle-income nations, where these countries received 2% and 24% of the worldwide contributions, even though their populations account for only 8% and 40% of the global population, respectively.
  • Shortage of Blood in India: India has improved its blood management ecosystem, but still faces a perennial shortage of blood units, impacting critical health-care services. 
    • As per WHO’s standards for self-sufficiency, India collected around 1.27 crore blood units and faced a shortage of over six lakh units in 2019-20. 
      • Such shortages have serious implications on the functioning of the health-care system and if addressed promptly, can significantly contribute to saving lives. 
  • Myths & Misinformation for voluntary Blood Donation: Many people have myths of the fear of infections and damage of immunity and these misconceptions can be dispelled through targeted awareness initiatives.

Why Do We Need a Blood Management System?

  • Raise & Spread Awareness: The private sector can work closely with the government to launch dedicated awareness campaigns aimed at the grassroots. 
    • Such campaigns can leverage the power of social media and deploy innovative tools to reiterate the need and benefits of regular and voluntary blood donation. 
  • Action by Policymakers across the World: Need to improve the global health architecture as a tool to catalyze economic growth and secure the future of the planet. 
  • Reducing the Disparity & Strengthening the Global Health Architecture: Greater health financing through international collaborations, deepening the adoption of digital health solutions, and increasing access to medical countermeasures
  • A Resilient Global Health Architecture: Need to prioritize access to blood and its products.
  • Collaboration between Leading Industry Players: It holds immense potential in introducing innovative models, effectively addressing numerous existing challenges. 
  • Hub & Spoke Model: Inequities in access to safe and sustainable blood can be mitigated through the establishment of robust public-private partnerships (PPP).
    • The hub and spoke is an innovative model where high-volume blood banks act as a hub for smaller blood centres and can address critical gaps in blood availability and distribution, thereby enhancing accessibility and availability of blood and its products.

Conclusion

With the experience of COVID-19 pandemic, the World needs for the global developmental road map for an equitable and sustainable future and the health paradigm must be prepared accordingly. Political leaders and the policymakers must continue to take steps to strengthen the blood management system. Simultaneously, proactive engagement from industry and active participation of the citizens are desirable.

Must Read: Global TB Report 2023 By World Health Organization (WHO)

Prelims Question (2022)

Which one of the following statements best describes the role of B cells and T cells in the human body?

(a) They protect the body from environmental allergens.

(b) They alleviate the body’s pain and inflammation.

(c) They act as immunosuppressants in the body.

(d) They protect the body from the diseases caused by pathogens.

Ans: (d)

                                                                                                                                      

Must Read

NCERT Notes For UPSC UPSC Daily Current Affairs
UPSC Blogs UPSC Daily Editorials

 

Archive Calendar

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031

Need help preparing for UPSC or State PSCs?

Connect with our experts to get free counselling & start preparing

Know about Physics Wallah

Physics Wallah is an Indian online education platform, that provides accessible & comprehensive learning experiences to students of classes 6 to 12 and those preparing for JEE and NEET exams. We also provide extensive NCERT solutions, sample papers, NEET, JEE Mains, BITSAT previous year papers, which makes us a one-stop solution for all resources. Physics Wallah also caters to over 3.5 million registered students and over 78 lakh+ Youtube subscribers with 4.8 rating on its app.

We Stand Out because

We successfully provide students with intensive courses by India's qualified & experienced faculties. PW strives to make the learning experience comprehensive and accessible for students of all sections of society. We believe in empowering every single student who couldn't dream of a good career in engineering and medical field earlier.

Our Key Focus Areas

Physics Wallah’s main focus is to create accessible learning experiences for students all over India. With courses like Lakshya, Udaan, Arjuna & many others, we have been able to provide a ready solution for lakhs of aspirants. From providing Chemistry, Maths, Physics formulae to giving e-books of eminent authors, PW aims to provide reliable solutions for student prep.

What Makes Us Different

Physics Wallah strives to develop a comprehensive pedagogical structure for students, where they get a state-of-the-art learning experience with study material and resources. Apart from catering students preparing for JEE Mains and NEET, PW also provides study material for each state board like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and others.

Aiming for UPSC?

Download Our App

# #
Quick Revise Now !
AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD SOON
UDAAN PRELIMS WALLAH
Comprehensive coverage with a concise format
Integration of PYQ within the booklet
Designed as per recent trends of Prelims questions
हिंदी में भी उपलब्ध
Quick Revise Now !
UDAAN PRELIMS WALLAH
Comprehensive coverage with a concise format
Integration of PYQ within the booklet
Designed as per recent trends of Prelims questions
हिंदी में भी उपलब्ध

<div class="new-fform">






    </div>

    Subscribe our Newsletter
    Sign up now for our exclusive newsletter and be the first to know about our latest Initiatives, Quality Content, and much more.
    *Promise! We won't spam you.
    Yes! I want to Subscribe.