E-Paper
Social stigma a hurdle: Only 2 donors in Pune volunteer to give blood for plasma therapy
A senior doctor at Sassoon General hospital, requesting anonymity, said, we have contacted 40 people till date and only two have come forward
Fear of ostracisation, stemming from the social stigma attached to the virus, is preventing residents who have recovered from the Sars-Cov-2 virus, which causes the Covid-19 infection, from volunteering to donate blood for plasma therapy.
A senior doctor at Sassoon General hospital, requesting anonymity, said, “We have contacted 40 people till date and only two have come forward.”
All 40 are patients who have tested negative for Covid-19, after having being treated and healed of the infection.
“The blood collected needs to be tested for anti-bodies and other illnesses before plasma can be separated. However, most have refused because of apprehensions about donating blood for this reason. Some say that their family is prohibiting them from donating the blood; some are fasting for Ramzan and so can donate blood only after the fasting season ends. We are trying to counsel them as much as possible.”
Of the 40 approached by Sassoon, only two have agreed, the doctor confirmed.
On April 24, State health minister Rajesh Tope stated that the central health ministry has allowed the use of plasma therapy as clinical trial on critically ill patients at state government hospitals, including Sassoon hospital in Pune.
According to Sassoon authorities, the hospital is yet to receive final approval for insurance of the recipient, a technical formality still pending with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Dr Subhash Salunkhe, chairman, Communicable Diseases Prevention and Control Technical Committee, said, “We will soon get the final approval from ICMR. In addition, we are also facing resistance form those who are completely cured of the virus. For plasma therapy, we need the plasma from the blood of those who have been completely cured of the virus.
“However, most people who have been contacted are refusing to come forward to donate their blood. Once all approvals are in place we will try harder to counsel and convince donors to come forward. Although plasma therapy is not a single line of treatment, it has shown some positive results in foreign countries when used in collaboration with other treatment lines.”
As per ICMR guidelines, only those patients who have been completely cured of the infection and tested negative twice after a gap of 24 hours post the incubation period of 14 days can donate blood for plasma therapy. The person must weigh at least 55kg; must not be pregnant; must be above the age of 18; and must not be HIV+, or Hepatitus B+. The person must not show any signs of Covid-19 infection or any flu-like symptoms for at least 28 days post recovery.
In Pune district, as of May 4, 553 people have been discharged after being declared completely cured out.
