Philip Ogola: Kenya National Blood Transfusion Service Center Is In Shambles

The founder of Time Out Media Limited, popularly referred to as the Digital Humanitarian, whose real name is Philip Ogola, has shared devastating news about the state of Kenya National Blood Transfusion Service (KNBTS) Centre.

While most of the mainstream media hype the, according to me, irrelevant BBI report, Ogola who has also worked as the Social Media Head at the Kenya RedCross Society and the brainchild behind the #iVolunteer campaign, through his Twitter account shared a thread highlighting how KNBTS has become an ignominy operating on decayed infrastructure.

SHOCKING NEWS ?

This is the #StateOfBlood in Kenya @KNBTSOfficial Bank Banks are EMPTY

❌ drivers
❌ vehicles grounded
❌ Gloves
❌ Blood bags
❌ Strapping materials
❌ Distilled water to test & screen blood & blood products
❌ Cold room broken down

Thread ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/qE6cRGUihy

— Digital Humanitarian +SocialGood (@PhilipOgola) November 27, 2019

According to Ogola, KNBTS blood banks are empty. The center has no drivers, working vehicles, gloves for the medical personnel, blood bags, strapping materials, distilled water to test and screen blood and blood products.

Ogola said that the facility also is operating with a Broken cold room that holds blood.  “This is why blood donors have been turning up at the KNBTS but they are being turned away due to lack of the necessary equipment and personnel to handle the same.”

It’s really SAD blood donors turning up at @KNBTSOfficial centres to donate blood are being turned away as there are no gloves , no blood bags , no strapping bags or refreshments needed to conduct bleeding ? #StateofBlood pic.twitter.com/uamsQ0tngd

— Digital Humanitarian +SocialGood (@PhilipOgola) November 27, 2019

Ogola stated that he gets more than 10 blood appeal messages every single day that they share on various platforms to help those in need to find blood donors.

As #DigitalHumanitarian we get about 10 blood appeals daily via social media, @HumanitarianDig

I also keep getting calls from people who need help to get blood , it’s emotional draining

KNBTS doesn’t have any blood or blood products in stock #StateOfBlood in Kenya pic.twitter.com/kvEHoRI8RF

— Digital Humanitarian +SocialGood (@PhilipOgola) November 27, 2019

@KNBTSOfficial Nairobi Centre used to dispatch
About 300 hundred Units of blood daily to hospitals & healthcentres for FREE

Now Dispatch Unit has no Blood or blood products #StateofBlood pic.twitter.com/n2SpxwsJpk

— Digital Humanitarian +SocialGood (@PhilipOgola) November 27, 2019

Philip is a survivor of acute nephritis of the Kidney which he had been diagnosed with before he sought specialized treatment abroad. Before Kenya Red Cross, Ogola who bagged BAKE Awards, Best Tweep Corporate for best use of social media worked at Gina Din Corporate Communications as a Social Media Consultant.

Ministry of Health (MoH) has not responded to the sad state of KNBTS that is supposed to be the hope for the unfortunate and hopeless.