Maharashtra SBTC to use the blood donation feature on Facebook

The Health Department of the state is making several efforts to overcome the shortage of blood during the Corona period and will now use the blood donation feature on Facebook to strengthen the blood donation drive. The step to use social media has been taken through the State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC).

 Blood stock in the state was declining during the corona lockdown. Blood donation camps were not organized on a large scale to avoid crowds and prevent corona infection. Blood donation camps were held in some places in the state taking care of safe distance. Addressing the people of the state from time to time, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Health Minister Rajesh Tope appealed for blood donation and they got good response from people of Maharashtra.

 "Now the lockdown in the state has been relaxed in some manner. Blood donation feature on Facebook will be used along with the blood donation camps, being organised by social organizations to meet blood requirements and to help the needy patients of other ailment as well as corona patients" said Dr. Pradip Vyas, Principal Secretary of Health Department.

 He further informed that in this initiative, about 71 government blood banks across the state will be trained to use the blood donation feature on Facebook. Post this, whenever a blood bank needs blood they could create a simple request from their Facebook page and connect with registered donors in their city.

 In India, More than 45 million people have registered themselves as blood donors on Facebook and are encouraged to donate blood through their blood donation feature. This plays a critical role in saving patient's life by supporting blood banks to arrange the required blood unit in time. If social media like Facebook is used for life-saving activities like blood donation, it can get a good response.

 Commenting on this initiative, Manish Chopra, Director and Head of Partnerships, Facebook India said, “We are committed to bringing people and communities together through our platform. The global pandemic has been a strong reminder that it is more important than ever to sign up to be a blood donor on Facebook, stay up-to-date about local blood needs and learn about safe ways to donate blood.”