More blood centres to cater to soldiers in North

Nadira Gunatilleke

The Healthcare and Nutrition Ministry has set up two blood collecting centres at Sampathnuwara and Kebithigollewa to make sure that adequate blood is available for Security Forces engaged in operations in the North whenever required, Ministry sources said.

Sources said the two blood centres were set up through the National Blood Centre in Colombo which is considered the best blood centre in South Asia. The Centre has also provided refrigerating facilities to North and East hospitals to store blood where there are no blood banks available.

Sri Lanka maintains the highest quality of blood in the South Asian region by screening blood donors for diseases like HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis B.

The centre has the best equipment, best blood products and the best waste management system with modern technology available in the South Asian region. The centre receives a large number of requests from Asian countries to train doctors and nurses.

The total annual blood requirement of Sri Lanka is 300,000 pints but only 260,000 pints of blood are being collected from donors. Arrangements will be made to increase the number of blood donors to meet the full requirement.