State kicks off ambitious blood donation drive
By George.Kebaso, February 6, 2024The government will need to collect about 282,000 units of blood between January and June to meet its annual target of at least 500, 000 units.
Medical Services Principal Secretary, Harry Kimutai revealed yesterday, the actual target is 520,000 units, however, preliminary findings shows that as at December 31, the ministry had collected 238,000 units of blood.
Further, in this initial report at the Kenya Tissue and Transplant Authority (KTTA), the country requires more than one (1) million units of blood in the next financial year to meet the country’s blood demand.
And to replicate what was achieved in the 2021-2022 Financial Year – when the government collected 412,000 units of blood, surpassing the target of 400,000 units by 12,000 units – the ministry flagged off 150,000 blood bags among other essential supplies to six regional blood centres and 43 blood satellites to the counties.
“Today marks a momentous occasion in our ongoing efforts to strengthen healthcare across our nation.
“As we gather here, we embark on a significant milestone, flagging off the distribution of 150,000 blood bags and essential supplies to our six regional blood centers and forty-three blood satellites to the counties,” said the PS at the KTTA headquarters where he also formally announced four blood ambassadors for the country.
The four blood ambassadors were President William Ruto’s daughter, Charlene, former Bungoma First Lady, Caroline Wangamati and two blood donor champions, Kennedy Sanya and Aisha Dafala.
The PS revealed that another consignment of 150,000 units are on the high seas, and expected in the country before the end of this month.
Kimtai said the government is continuing to make significant efforts to implement Universal Health Coverage (UHC) as part of its healthcare agenda. UHC, he noted, aims to ensure that all individuals and communities have access to essential health services without suffering any financial hardship.