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Story #17 of 50 days, 50 Stories Campaign
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The Almighty has a sense of humour – two donors from Surat, donating for two patients from Chennai. Two Blood Stem Cell Donations from Surat at the same time for two different patients from Chennai
Two patients belonging to different regions in India, decide to get treatment from the same hospital in Chennai. Both donors found a match in DATRI Blood Stem Cell Donors Registry. The two matched donors agreed to donate. Now the coincidences pile on, both donors registered at Surat, Gujarat. One donor registered during a blood donation camp, and another registered through his organization.
When approached for the medical check-up, both were willing around similar dates. So the coordinator asked if they would be comfortable with another donor undergoing the process alongside. They agreed 😊
The National Donation Manager along with the local field coordinator ensured that the process was planned precisely and completed smoothly. The two donors were extremely happy that they had another donor’s support during the process. The doctors at the hospital also ensured that both donor queries were answered and there was no hitch / hurdle in the process.
Once the Confirmatory typing report and the medical reports were received, the doctor’s clearance was taken and the work up planned. After extensive discussions regarding the donation dates with the Transplant Center doctor, the Apheresis doctor, the local field donation coordinator and Donation Manager a plan to go ahead with the donation for both the donors on the same day was defied.
Both the donors were thrilled to be donating on the same day. On the day of donation, both the donors arrived at the collection center on time. The Collection center Physician and team was all set to initiate the process. The collection process of the first donor started in the morning and ended by lunch time, after a break for lunch the 2nd collection started which ended in the evening. Both donors were supporting each other during each other’s collection. . DATRI’s local coordinator managed all protocols for both donations without any misses and the process was managed smoothly. In the end, both the donors were pleased and content that they could save someone’s life.
Once the schedule for the collection had been finalized, our next task was logistics for transportation of the products to Chennai for the patients. The extracted products can only be carried by a human courier and as Surat is a small airport, we were unable to find direct flights. Hence the courier needed to travel to Ahmedabad and then fly to Chennai.
All the required documents and approval letters were signed and we were ready for the transport. The products were taken to Ahmedabad via Cab from Surat since there was no direct connecting flights; distance between Surat to Ahmedabad is approx 4 – 5 hours by road. The transport coordinator along with the local donation coordinator ensured that the box containing the products would maintain the cool temperature required for the transport.
Due to the COVID pandemic, DATRI’s Human Courier had to reach Ahmedabad airport at least 2 hours in advance of the flight. Once the flight landed, he handed over the products to the hospital as per the schedule. The entire transportation had taken more time than the collection 😊
It is tough to plan and organize a donation process with one donor during these challenging time and the Almighty keeps throwing challenges at us. Our DATRI team manages such changes by ensuring all the procedures are e in place and we can manage two donations on the same day with seeming ease. This could only happen due to the meticulous planning and excellent coordination by each member involved in the process. Our Collection Center Physicians and their team also supported us to make this happen.
About DATRI:
DATRI is a Not-for-Profit organization founded in 2009 with a mission to save lives of those suffering from life-threatening Fatal blood disorders like Blood Cancer, Thalassemia, Leukemia, Aplastic Anemia, Sickle Cell Anaemia, etc.
DATRI is registered with the Government of India as a Section 8 organization, and all monetary contributions towards DATRI are subject to 80G exemptions
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About the Author:
Saranya Srinivasan has completed her master’s degree in Industrial Biotechnology. She has in-depth knowledge of Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA) which plays a vital role in Stem cell Transplant. She is associated with DATRI for more than 5 years. She has been working as a Transplant Center Co-Ordinator and works closely with various National Hospitals and International Registries. She has a deeper understanding of DATRI’s Vision and Mission and works passionately to achieve the organizational goals.