Blood shortage has hit health facilities in nine districts of greater Masaka region. These health facilities rely on blood supplies from the Uganda Blood Transfusion Services regional blood bank at Kitovu and an auxiliary centre at Masaka regional referral hospital. However, lack of required reagents used in testing and screening blood at the two storage […]
Blood shortage has hit health facilities in nine districts of greater Masaka region.
These health facilities rely on blood supplies from the Uganda Blood Transfusion Services regional blood bank at Kitovu and an auxiliary centre at Masaka regional referral hospital. However, lack of required reagents used in testing and screening blood at the two storage and supply centres have caused a crisis in the region.
Dr Florence Lubega, the Director of Kitovu Missionary Hospital explains that they are currently stranded and cannot handle patients that are in need of transfusion.
The situation is not any different at Masaka regional referral hospital where patients have been asked to wait for supplies from the National Medical Stores.
Mathias Bakabulindi, one of the administrators at the regional blood bank at Kitovu, says that they are no longer issuing out any supplies of blood despite demands from the various health facilities, after they run out of blood screening and testing reagents two weeks ago.
