Donated blood well screened: Hospital

National

All blood collected from donors is properly screened at the Port Moresby General Hospital blood bank laboratory to ensure it is safe for patients, says laboratory scientist Phyllis Ivarato.
Ivarato said the Port Moresby General Hospital blood bank laboratory separated blood into four groups; A, B, O and AB.
“Blood is collected, it comes over to the lab so we are the ones that make sure that the blood is safe for transfusion and we screen for the blood type.
“We also screen the blood for basic tests that we have like HIV, syphilis, Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C. So we make sure the blood is clean enough for it to be transfused to our patients.”
The laboratory also extracts other blood products such as platelets, plasma and red cell concentrate.
“Patients who are low in their haemoglobin, we give red cell concentrate to them, the whole blood as this is given to patients who are actively bleeding.
“Platelets are given to patients especially with a condition like dengue fever.
“Platelets help the protein in the system, so if they lack platelets we extract that from fresh blood that we get and we prepare for patients who will need them.
We also have fresh frozen plasma for other conditions.”