PERCEPTION OF PEOPLE TOWARDS BLOOD DONATION ITS BENEFITS AND HARMS

Background: Blood donation is very safe medical procedure nowdays. Donated blood is lifesaving for individuals who need it. In Pakistan the concept of Voluntary unpaid blood donation (VUBD) almost does not exist due to insufficient knowledge, false perception and awareness regarding blood donation. (Dhara and Dinesh, 2012) Objectives: The main objective of this study was to determine the public perception towards blood donation i.e. Its benefits and harms among population of Bahawalpur. Methods: A Cross sectional study was designed in general population of Bahawalpur from January 2018 to March 2018. A total of 350 respondents were interviewed with the help of self-created and well- structured questionnaire. Data analysis was performed by using (SPSS version 21) for windows. Descriptive statistics was used as analysis plan. A scoring of 1 and 0 was done for right and wrong response respectively. Results: The majority of participants (52.9%) were non donors among which (28%) were females. Among the donor group majority (37.71%) were males. 88.3% respondents were aware of blood donation. Among the donor’s major reason for donating blood was noble cause in 69.4%. Conclusion: In Pakistan there is a very less percentage of women among blood donors. The reasons for this are number of factors which include beliefs that bothers on religious and cultural and challenges associated with donor education. Awareness session and strategies should be held for decreasing the perception that the blood donation is not harmful can lead to an increase in blood donation