Uganda: Your Blood Donation Could Save a Mother’s Life

Faridah M. Luyiga

14 June 2011

opinion

When Hon. Bernard Mulengani’s wife needed an emergency blood transfusion during her pregnancy, she was able access the blood but this didn’t save her life. Although medical personnel say she died due to over bleeding, Mulengani contends his wife, Gloria Kyasimire, died due to a blood mismatch.

This is not an isolated case. Many expectant mothers continue to die as a result of severe bleeding during pregnancy, child birth or after delivery. Most mothers die because they cannot receive blood transfusion when they need them. So, as we celebrate World Blood Donor Day today, let’s think about mothers whose lives could be saved by a few units of your donated blood.

Severe bleeding has been identified as the largest contributor to maternal deaths in developing countries. According to the World Health Organisation, it accounts for 25 per cent of all of maternal deaths, with other factors such as infection responsible for 15 per cent, eclampsia (12 per cent), obstructed labour (8 per cent) and unsafe abortion (13 per cent).

Direct causes account for eight per cent, while indirect causes such as malaria, anaemia and HIV account for 20 per cent of these deaths.

If expectant mothers can access blood when they need it and also receive safe blood transfusions, many lives would be saved. This year’s World Blood Donor Day theme, “More Blood More Life”, also supports saving the lives of pregnant women who die due to severe bleeding by availing them safe blood.

Uganda’s maternal mortality rate currently stands at 435 deaths per 100,000 live births. While we are working towards Millennium Development Goal number five, that seeks to reduce these deaths to 131 per 100,000 births by 2015, we are still far from achieving this goal.

Extra efforts are needed to reduce maternal deaths. Since severe bleeding has been identified as the main cause of maternal deaths, safe transfusions are necessary and without enough donated blood, many mothers’ lives will continue to be at risk.

Although the government should run blood donation drives to avoid stock-outs, it’s individual efforts, from you and I, to donate blood because without the donors’ will, government efforts will not yield much.

On the other hand, expectant mothers can also play their role by seeking help whenever they suspect a problem. Some cases of fatal bleeding have been a result of mothers seeking medical care when it is too late to reverse the situation.

While access to blood is paramount, receiving safe blood transfusion is equally important. This is a call to health personnel to play their role by ensuring that blood is screened before transfusion to avoid cases of both mismatch and infection.

Pregnant women are among the main groups of people that need life-saving blood transfusion. By saving an expectant mother’s life, we are also saving that of her baby. Donate “more blood” and give “more life” to our mothers and children.

Ms Luyiga is a fellow with MakSPH-CDC HIV/Aids Fellowship programme.

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