6 lakh litres of blood thrown away over 5 years! Wait, WHAT?

If reports published on certain online news portals in April, 2017 are to be believed, this statement comes up as a huge shock for all the people of India, let alone any organization.
But how true is the report?
India, on an average, faces an acute blood shortage amounting upto 3 million units and wastage of this quantum would be a slap on the entire system. Additionally, the numerous lives which went unsaved due to the apparent shortage, their loss can never be accounted for.
What the data analysts fail to understand before publishing the report are some very elementary facts.
First, blood like any other commodity has a brief shelf life.
Second, donated blood needs to match with every aspect of the patient before it can be transfused into their system.
Third, hospitals encourage patients’ family to find donors in order to inculcate the habit of regular donations in the society. They also fail to understand that the hospitals need to maintain a stock of blood for unforeseen circumstances which might arise.
The first two aspects are fairly simple to understand while the final rung in the ladder is something which is the root cause of most problems. The query being – when hospitals have blood why don’t they provide it to the needy when required?
Simple, they have the blood in stock with them, but most of it is kept in reserve to tackle any contingency that may arise in the area, the happening of which can never be predicted. Besides, if they start doing so instead of asking, rather encouraging, the kin of the patient to look for donors from within the family or their friends, thereby creating a sense of importance for the cause of blood donation and also creating an awareness in the ignorant society, people start taking the system for granted and no efforts of any kind are made on their end thereby disrupting the balance of the entire system.
Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Science situated in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh is one of the largest public hospitals in the state. It was named one among the largest contributors in the state to be accused for blood wastage. But, it stands tall as an example as to why such reports are nothing but a farce.
Catering to the medical needs of the entire state of Uttar Pradesh, not a single patient casualty has happened in the hospital over the period concerning the report due to blood shortage. Not only that, in the current scenario (as on 13/08/2017) at the time when I am writing this article, it is such that the blood bank at the hospital is running at full capacity to ensure that no one suffers due to the apparent blood shortage, as stated by senior members of the Dept. of Transfusion Medicine at the hospital.
It is of utmost importance to save lives. But in that course, some amount of blood gets wasted, not deliberately but imperatively. The hospital/blood bank administrators themselves would never want to waste the effort that goes into collecting one unit of blood out of voluntary blood donations, let alone 6 lakh litres of blood and also the lack of communications between various blood banks and hospitals further adds to this ever growing problem.
With passing time, the usability of stored blood keeps going down and there are situations when it is not feasible for the hospital/blood bank to transfuse the blood collected a while back, the wastage or non-use is completely justified rather the right thing to do and the correct course of action.
Though there is one serious problem with the entire structure that is currently in place, which is that of sharing. Till date no solution to this problem has been put in place. The blood banks are still not interconnected so that they can help each other in case of requirement of a component not available with them. Sooner or later the problem which currently seems very menial will come banging at the doors and if left unprepared the situation might worsen.
It is time the authorities woke up and took cognizance of the disaster waiting for them.

 

– Shashwat Singh

RMLNLU

 

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CHOCOLATE

Chocolates won’t ever be the same,

Maybe they would,

But that one was different.

It was sweeter,

It melted like butter,

And touched my heart 

Before my tongue got a taste of it.

Had Dairy Milk changed their formula?

Or, the gamble for titration settled for perfection?

Or, was it the occasion that had embellished the stage?

Red, it was all around,

Valentine’s and Roses not to be counted there

We were in a hospital.

That stranger who gifted it to me,

Might have the hand in this case.

(It tends to taste better when it is not you who bought it)

But how?

I only met him half an hour ago.

And maybe we won’t cross paths ever again

Stakes were too high for that

Yet he upgraded the best thing for me in super- superlative degree.

Mother has always said “Don’t take things from a stranger”

But, she never said anything about donating!

So, I donated 

my blood

To a child whose father stood in front of me,

With that chocolate

And tears in his eyes, 

a smile on his face.

“Words are not enough”

He said and gave that chocolate to me 

that he bought for his own child.

That chocolate was special,

Indeed it was.

Because of the history it carried

Of accident,

Of vulnerability,

Of compassion,

Of Resurrection,

Of overwhelming emotions,

Of the new formed bond.

Chocolates won’t ever be the same,

Maybe they would,

But that one was different.

It was sweeter,

It melted like butter,

And touched my heart 

Before, my tongue got a taste of it.

– RIYA BHALLA

My story

Life is very unpredictable.  We never know that if the person whom we met, would ever meet us again. Something similar happened with me five years ago. By nature, then, I used to be shy. I never interacted with people, sat aside in a corner, all by myself, not making friends. For once, I was that person who didn’t even interact with her family. But things started to change when one of my mama (uncle) observed me. He helped me a lot. He made me what I am today. He  made me confident. He used to call me ‘Furbhi’. He was the one who chided me and made fun of me every time I refused to interact with people. My Umang mama was the one with a very big heart, who thought for others before thinking of self, who wanted to bring smile on others’ face without even caring for how sad he himself was. It was on 8 march 2013 that we were chatting on facebook as always and he was teasing me for not interacting with others. But after that day everything changed. I had never thought that it was my last talk with him. The next day i.e. on 9 march 2014,at around 7 my nani called up my mumma and told her that Umang mama was no more and that he had met with a road accident. He could have been saved, had he got blood on time. It was that moment where I couldn’t think of what to do. I wasn’t able to believe what had happened. After that incident I stopped visiting my Nani’s place because it reminded me of him. After a year of his death, I decided that I will be what he wanted me to be. Since then, as he wanted me to be, I started interacting with people. By then, I had already decided, that as soon as I’ll turn 18, I’ll donate blood, regularly. 8th January 2015 was the day when I donated blood for the very first time, the happiest moment for me. I was not as excited about my 18th birthday as I was for my first blood donation. That very moment I felt that I had gifted something to my mama, the best feeling ever. This was how my first Blood Donation experience came into existence. This was also the time when I came to know about BloodConnect. I realised that these people did such an amazing job, which included arranging donors throughout Delhi. So, I decided that I will join the organisation. It was on February 21 that I joined BloodConnect.  And that feeling was much more greater when I realised that we could help saving lives of many.
Bloodconnect is the best part of my life. And I’m thankful to all my seniors who had been so cooperative and generous throughout.

– Surbhi Gupta

Service or a Habit?

September 4th 2014. It was this date that marked my first Blood Donation experience, at St. Stephen’s College (my first semester in college). I asked myself why? Why should I do it? The thought process answered like “Hey! This is something I have not done. Let me try my hand at it.” I did not feel that I did something noble. But, just to show everyone that I did something so good which was in the world’s definition of noble – I posted on Facebook, “So, listen, people, I donated for the first time.” But, then I asked myself another question, “Was I satisfied?”

I have been associated with BloodConnect since March 2015. My intention of joining the organization had nothing to do with “service to the society or giving back to the society”. It was not even to fulfill the lack of satisfaction that I felt a few months back. I joined the organization so that I could do something which I hadn’t done yet. It made me think, ‘Am I the only one who is so insensitive or am I thinking too much about this?’. Though this thought never left the back of my mind, my journey with BloodConnect started.

The only sort of satisfaction that I ever got was when the requester called and thanked me for the help. Of all the times that I have donated, not even once did I feel this sense of fulfillment. The same thought, then I realised, was going through my head – was I that insensitive? What was the point of donating? Why did I do it?

In our 5th semester, we had an assignment to present a paper or a PowerPoint as part of the internal assessment. Being a Chemistry student, we had the liberty to present on any topic related to the subject. I was delaying my turn for weeks as I had no topic in mind to present. Eventually, I had no option but to present. I decided to present on the science behind blood donation. I started with the presentation. Within 5 minutes I realized I would not be able to tell much about the science behind blood donation so, I decided to stick to the known territory. For, the next 20 minutes I went on telling them about BloodConnect, the achievements till date, the vision that we have as an organization, the environment in which we work and so on. At the end of the presentation, I ended by telling them about an incident where I helped a person who required platelets for her sister. After listening to the incident everyone started clapping. Listening to the entire class clap made the same thought go through my head again.
Did I donate so that I could see my batch mates clap for me when I tell them about the incident? Why did I do it? 50 odd people appreciating me did not give me any sort of satisfaction. Rather I felt even more dissatisfied. Why? They were clapping because for them, my going and donating was an act of kindness, an act of humanity, an act of service. That was not the point of donating. It was not an act of kindness. Someone who was in need was saved, that was a consequence of my action. It was not the primary motive. Basically, they missed the entire point of the presentation. Rather, I was not able to convey the point. The presentation was supposed to encourage people to donate blood voluntarily, and I don’t think I was able to motivate anyone to do that.

Now, in my head, I was imagining the following situation. The moment they started clapping I wanted to tell them that this is not something to be proud of. Point being, this is not an achievement. How many of you go for walks every day or for playing a sport or listen to music to relax or do whatever to keep yourselves healthy? I feel every one. Now, when you do that, do you pat yourselves on the back and say that good job buddy, you did something good today, you performed a noble deed, you should be proud of yourself? I guess no one does that. Then why do you think donating is a noble cause, an achievement?

Why do I endorse this thought? Even if someone that day was motivated to donate blood, the whole reason for them doing so would be, “he did such a beautiful thing by helping out those people, such a noble deed, even I want to do that”. Though this is a good start but this is not the point. The reason is that, the moment the person donates he/she will get that satisfaction, the feeling of achievement and once you get that it will not motivate you to do it again. Once the person gets that feeling of achievement, nothing will motivate them to repeat it. Now, such people will donate again only if there is an utmost emergency. This just does not serve the purpose of the organization. My point is, voluntary blood donation should not be portrayed as an achievement but as a habit. Just as every day, we get up and do some sort of activity to keep ourselves healthy, we should get up once every three and a half to four months and donate. Now, there is no need for me to go on about the benefits of blood donation and the myths and the misconceptions regarding the same, all of us can go to our website and read them.

This should be the reason for which we should work as a team in BloodConnect. We should work towards making people understand that Voluntary Blood Donation should be made a habit. The sense of achievement should be considered as a secondary goal, something that comes afterwards. The moment all of us realize this and start working towards this, we will be able to solve the problem better. Not that we are not solving it right now. But, we can always seek improvement. And that is the kind of satisfaction I am trying to achieve.

– Glaison Cherian

Say Hello!

Say Hello…..

To me and my sadness
Say hello
To incessant fate of darkness
Say hello
To that every eager eye
Full of questions intend to spy
The disease from which I’ll die
With sunken darken lips
And ready to break ribs
With ever hollow veins
And never fulfilled dreams
I desire
For a body, life and soul
Devoid of loophole
That drains the blood from body
And sucks the life from soul
A day without injections
And a day without a tour
To those red crossed hospitals
Monthly; and bi-weekly soon
Before the day of judgement
But my soul yearns to say
To that every different donor
My life saving loner
Who helps the mankind
Will my heart say HELLO!

 

– Pratibha Lohiya

MAKING FRIENDS

One of my friends used to say, ‘Everyone, when they grow up is remembered by something that they did in their college days- something that identifies them even decades later.’ For me, I would gladly like to be remembered by BloodConnect.

After spending over two years in this organisation as I look back to find the little circle of friends I have made, I am appalled by the way I have learned to see things. Being an ‘IITian’, I was almost always convinced that I was the smartest of the lot anywhere. Come to BloodConnect, and I see (to my dismay) that there are people who know so much more than me, have a better understanding of things, and are often- more emotionally intelligent, a trait which I have found plays a role equal to, if not greater than IQ.

As I settled into this atmosphere of kids who stepped up the latest fashion, expressed strong opinions about social causes, and took to the streets raising a voice, or just simply having fun, I was awed by the perseverance with which they pursued their ideas. They seemed intelligent, passionate, and creative. This atmosphere flowed around me like water around a rock. I was not really changed by it, but some of it stuck with me.

Meanwhile in the process, I managed to make some pretty good friends. As is often with friends, it was a gradual and natural process. I never really thought about it, and I made no special effort on my part. But we just sort of, fit together. Us, trying to find our way through life’s many mazes, and with our shared vision. Trying to figure out a way to make things work, travelling through the city, and often brainstorming together.

When I was first inducted into BloodConnect, I was told by one of my seniors that two of the many people he met through BloodConnect went on to become his best friends. How that could be possible, given that we spend so much more time with people from our own colleges, defeated me. It took me few years, but I get it now. I have come to believe that the friends we make through the times of stress and pressure are the ones who really stick with us. It does not matter who you spend the most time with, what does matter is the sense of belonging that you get when you are with them.

When a person is under pressure, they exhibit traits that are not seen otherwise. When they are pressed for resources, when they are asked to go out of their way to do someone a favour-is when you see what they are worth. How a person treats his juniors, how he handles crisis situations- says a lot about what they are like in actual life. I suppose this is why friendships forged in BloodConnect stay for so long. You’ve seen people when things are down and out, and you know that they will always have a solution to the myriad of problems that life offers.

With BloodConnect spanning over so many institutes in so many cities, I have met a lot of people in my two years here. Given BloodConnect’s corporate structure of working, I have had to interact with many of them in a purely professional capacity. As we all might be painfully aware, some of these people we wish to restrict just to their professional roles. But some of them strike a chord with our hearts. Without realising it, meetings turn to get togethers, con calls turn to bouts of laughter (and sometimes crying) and work turns into fun– which is what I believe a voluntary organisation like BloodConnect should work on anyway. In the end, after all, what stays with you is the family you made. I like to call these people my BloodConnect family- because I know they will stay with me throughout, and stick up for me even when I am wrong (then reprimand me in private).

I suppose that in every aspect of life, things can get really tough without friends. Because in the end, it is all about enjoying the process. And while yes, I too derive a sense of satisfaction out of my work, my work cannot make me laugh until my stomach hurts, or give me a shoulder to cry on when I am heart broken. No, only real people can do that. It takes different people different amounts of time to realise this fact. Being a reserved person myself, I took my own time to make friends. But I am glad they found me.

All through the camps, the awareness sessions in college, waking up at six in the morning for Raahgiri, working together-our bonds flourished. The BloodConnect Annual Event, when some big names (Kanan Gill, Nikhil D’Souza, Parikrama to name a few) came to perform for us each year usually serve as a reminder to us, that we deserve an after party, for all our work over the past year. This is when city teams from all over the country come in, and we get to see how big we are. It is amazing to see, that we are such a large team that works so gracefully together. For me personally, that is the part of it all that awes me the most: How a team of hundreds of people works together to make a system, and it is all purely voluntary.

Even if I am not able to contribute much to BloodConnect, I will always know that it has given me some things that I could not possibly explain in terms of the ways we are accustomed to measuring things- few years of memories and experience, and a lifetime of friendship.

– Ruchi Churiwala

IIT DELHI

BloodConnect Survival: 101

Firstly, congratulations, everyone! We had an absolutely phenomenal term. I hope your work made you happy and that you’ll be continuing in the next term too.

As a person, I tend to overestimate myself. Always. I believe I can do anything and everything (which doesn’t work sometimes). And, I’ve extended that attitude to this article. I guess I’m somewhat qualified to give you some advice or ‘fundae’, as our beloved IITians call it, I’ve still gone ahead and written something which might be absolute trash and might be invaluable. That, buddy, depends on you. Now that I have shifted the onus to you, let me start: 

#1. You know what they say- once you’re in, you’re in. There’s no escaping. But well, you wouldn’t want to escape. You might leave BloodConnect, but BloodConnect will never leave you (we have vampire-like tendencies :P)

#2. You’re doing the real thing. Do your work as though no one could do it any better (I was actually convinced for the most part that no one could do my work better). You come with your own idiosyncrasies, hopes and fears. You’re you, do what you do best.

#3. Don’t take yourself or others too seriously. No one knows what they’re doing; they’re just doing it… well. 

#4. A good sense of humour isn’t very common. Keep everything as light as possible. 

#5. Listen to what your seniors have to say, it’s respectful. Whether you want to do it or not depends on you. 

#6. Never be afraid to speak your mind out. Everyone is waiting to hear what you have to say. Be courteous. Try not to be rude- everyone’s working just as hard as you are. 

#7. Don’t let power get into your head. Stay grounded; we all have a common goal. 

#8. Try to make friends. They’ll make everything easier for you. You’ll have a lot more fun when they’re around. BloodConnect has seen some deep and historical friendships. 😛 

Also, they can run errands for you! 

#9. One day at a time (when things get too much, which can be often).

#10. Help will always be given to those who ask for it, much like Hogwarts!

#11. You might get frustrated, might feel resigned due to lack of response, but don’t worry, everything comes around eventually. That my friend, is the secret to not just BloodConnect survival, but life in general. 

#12. First understand and then try to be understood (Thank you, Mr. Covey). 

#13. Helplines, Camps, Awareness Sessions are just like water in your diet. Essential for survival, but often forgotten. 

#14. There is such a thing as free lunch (my budding economists, please take note!). Do join for all the treats, lunches which are on BloodConnect. 

#15. Your gut is mostly right. 

#16. Everyone’s here for you. Always

From Them to Us

I walk the eternal road
To go to a never ending ride.
The sun gazes down to ask
Did you ever spread light?
The falling leaves block my way to question
My presence, of giving anyone a relief sight?
The river tears down my eardrums
Making a humongous noise
To interrogate
Did I ever assist someone’s heart to ignite?
I look back
And humbly smile
And smile
And smile
And continue my never – ending ride!

By Pratibha Lohiya

WHY SHOULD I?

From the day I was born

Up to my youth’s thrill

Just one thing has kept me on

“Why should I?  Others will”

 

On the road I’ve seen the begging child

Whose single glance reminds of all my bills

His pleading eyes drive me wild

But I say “why should I? Others will”

 

Not a few steps ahead, I have seen

A young boy like me, lying still

With a pool of blood and people watching keen

But I say “why should I? Others will”

 

Not far, I usually see hungry homeless people

Bound to the road, unaware of heat & chill

Even imagining their life’s roughness isn’t simple

But I move on –“why should I? Others will”

One day, through that daily dump as I rode

A car thrashed me searching its daily kill

Because that day was my turn to lie on the road

The frightened me thought- “Now who will?”

 

Lying dead, I screamed with eyes looking up

But what happened next made my eyes fill

A young boy like me came close, held me up

And said-“If not me, who will!”

 

His words pierced my heart like a knife

Destroyed my mind’s coward and selfish hill

That day a new turn came in my life

Because finally I realized- “If not me, then no one will”

 

For how long will we neglect our responsibility

And put the burden on others to do the social drills

It’s the high time to change our mentality

And say with a determined voice- “Yes, I will…I will…”

 – Aakash Ravgotra, IIT ROPAR

 

 

 

 

To the ones who help us through life

If there ever were a competition for the Most Appropriate Title, this one wouldn’t even get through the entries. You wouldn’t expect anyone to write this for a ‘work anniversary’ as LinkedIn (ever so kindly) reminds me. But somehow, I managed to rig the competition to my favour and oddly enough, this seems to be perfect for My two years in BloodConnect.

Do note the personalisation, I say My.

My, because it’s become such an important part of me as a person (mind you; I’ll say I’m not ‘just’ a person but a force to be reckoned with) with a weird spelling (girl or a guy?) called Cearet.

My, because you never know what you chance upon. And sometimes, if you’re lucky enough, you’ll find what is exactly right for you. You’ll feel as though you were made for this. And my chance was BloodConnect’s volunteer application.

My, because, a home (away from home) is such a simple concept but sometimes, people spend their entire lifetimes looking for their familiar and happy place. When you feel a sense of belongingness to someone or to some thing, embrace it. And remember: nothing good ever goes away. This good thing will always stay with me.

My, because when you love the work you do (it still feels like work :P), there’s nothing that can compare with that feeling. When you’re passionate, your eyes light up and in that moment, that spark seemingly lasts forever. You’ll do all you can, you’ll give it your everything and even then you’ll wonder what more you can give. I hope you never lose your sense of wonder (much like Lee Ann).

My, because you need people who’ll tell you when you’re being a jerk but who’ll also tell you that you’re downright amazing. They’ll say mean things to you but never (ever) behind your back. Their honesty will be cringe-worthy, their feedbacks would be worse than onions. Take it all in. It’ll make you a better person and a better volunteer. There will be days when you wouldn’t want to work; go to these people, they’ll turn it all around for you. Attend camps with them, attend GBMs with them and slowly but surely, they’ll become like those flies at the edge of the windshield where the wipers don't reach and who always remain. Go, meet those flies.

Here’s to the things/people/feelings/whatever you might want to call it that are essential to your being and who’ll help you through life.

Remember, make this time your own. And come back here, I promise to listen to all your stories with the same love and enthusiasm as I am telling you mine.