BUJUMBURA June 14th (ABP) – Open Days have been held at the headquarters of the National Blood Transfusion Center (CNTS) since Monday June 11, 2018 until the 13th of July as part of the celebration of World Blood Donor Day to show the public how it accomplishes the missions entrusted to it.
Dr. Nduwarugira set up the missions assigned to the center specializing in blood transfusion, from collection to distribution of blood and its derivatives, through its biological analysis and conservation.In a press briefing held for the purpose, CNTS Director General Dr. Jean Bosco Nduwarugira said that CNTS has, since its creation in 1988, made much progress during its 30 years of activities.
The CNTS thus ensures the acquisition of the material, the equipment and the reagents necessary for the blood transfusion. It is also working to enforce quality standards for blood transfusion and is providing financial and technical support to the four regional blood transfusion centers in Bururi, Cibitoke, Gitega and Ngozi provinces.
In addition to collecting blood from donors, the center also has the mission of organizing and coordinating blood transfusion throughout the country. It guarantees the quality system, ensures control and ensures the safety of blood products and their derivatives.
CNTS also provides technical support to hospital blood transfusion services by providing equipment logistics and blood transfusion-specific reagents, as well as training and performance of their staff.
For more efficiency in the field, the CNTS has partnerships with the structures, including the Burundi Red Cross, with which it shares the same objective. It also has the latitude to carry out any other activity allowing it to carry out its mission on all the national territory.
“The CNTS has challenges to overcome,” said its managing director. In particular, it is difficult to make the center more efficient and thus better able to respond to the patient’s explicit request. This will involve building the capacity to sensitize donors, collect blood, analyze it and distribute it. “This is a job that requires substantial material, technical and financial resources,” said the CNTS general manager, welcoming that the difficulties are becoming increasingly minimal and that the CNTS is able to respond to the missions recorded in its specifications.
The CNTS is indeed on the way to enact the rules of blood transfusion to improve its performance. The clinician will be able to administer the exact component of the blood the patient needs. In most cases, the patient’s condition does not need the whole blood, he only needs one component, such as red blood cells, plasma, serum and platelets, noted Dr. Nduwarugira. As a result, the risks of adverse effects will be limited or avoided. There will be no more waste of blood, in that the substances in a blood bag can help save a lot of lives at once.
In Burundi, the ceremonies marking the day under the theme: “The donation of blood as an act of solidarity” have to take place on June 14, 2018, at the headquarters of Bubanza province, as reported.
