부산대학교 도서관

Blood is a key fluid which circulates inside the body with various significant benefits. One of the most important role of it is respiration, excretion, maintenance of normal acid base balance, nutrition, regulation of water balance, regulation of body temperature, transport of hormones, vitamins, salts and transportation of various essential vitamins required inside the body etc. Blood has various components present which perform various important roles. It has red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, plasma etc. The knowledge of the function of all the blood components helps all the medical professionals to utilize it to the maximum level for the benefit of the patients. If the patient is having low haemoglobin level, we can transfuse packet red blood cells, if the patient is suffering from thrombocytopenia due to various reasons like dengue, gynaecological reasons or any other reasons we can transfuse platelets. And if patients require coagulation factors during various medical procedures we can transfuse plasma or factor IX or factor VIII to obtain immediate relief. The usage of blood and its various components has given a new dimension in the field of medical sciences. Owing to its impact and phenomenal usage in various surgeries, the department of transfusion medicine became an integral section in every hospital. A hospital without a blood bank holds a lesser relevance as compared to the hospital which is fully equipped with all the sophisticated amenities of blood bank. It all started back in 1932 after realizing the usage of blood in various treatment the first blood bank was established in Leningrad hospital. In 1937 Bernard fantus, director of therapeutics at the cook county hospital in Chicago, establishes the first hospital blood bank in the united states. Charles Richard Drew known as father of blood bank is an eminent pioneer in this field, whose work on the banking of blood products and the plans of collecting and distributing blood saved countless lives in the trenches of World War II and the wards of military and civilian hospitals. In India owing to its vast population and maximum requirements of blood. Leela Moolgaonkar, a social reformer, started the movement of voluntary blood donation camps in Mumbai from 1954. The 1960s saw many blood banks open in different cities. Though as per the various sources the first records of the voluntary blood donation started in India at Kolkata in west Bengal during world war-II. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]