BLOOD TRANSFUSION

Hokitika Guardian, 27 January 1926, Page 3

BLOOD TRANSFUSION

One thousand volunteers, who can : be called upon to give their blood in ; transfusion cases, are being enrolled bv the London Blood Transfusion Service, a little known branch of Red i Cross work, says “ Science Service.’ J This service to London hospitals was j organised five years ago, because the doctors found it so difficult to obtain blood of the right type when a transfusion was necessary to save a patient’s life. The blood of each human lieing belongs to one of four chemical types, and an individual who is willing to transfer some of his blood can be used only if he has blood like that of the patient. The classification is based on the presence or absence of two substances which arc found to he hereditary. One type of individual has blood containing substance A ; a second type has substance B; a third has neither A nor B; and a fourth, I which is comparatively rare, has both A and B.

To date the London Transfusion Corps has served 217 eases, blit calls from hospital have become so numerous that a few hundred volunteer reserves are no longer enough. The organisation states that calls come in at all hours of the day and night. It has its members classified according to blood type, and within an hour ol the request the service has a volunteer of the proper type nt the hospital.