Nairobi, Kenya; March 5th, 2021
Blood donors in Turkana County will now have an opportunity to receive end-to-end information alerts regarding their donations using new technology. Health and Sanitation CEC Jane Ajele today in partnership with the Damu System Limited (DSL) today unveiled a new system that manages an ICT platform for blood information management called Damu Sasa.
The innovation, a product of the Presidential DigiTalent Programme under the Ministry of ICT and Youth Affairs, was piloted at the Kenyatta National Hospital and has been operational in Kenya for the last two years. CEC Ajele said that the platform will play a significant role in eliminating doubts among blood donors concerning the whereabouts of their blood donation as has been reported on various occasions before.
Ajele noted that the innovation is set to revolutionize mobilization for blood donations and mapping of donors for targeted drives owing to the fact that it operates on a mobile phone App that creates a lasting relationship between the donors and transfusing facilities.
In addition, Ajele said that the App comes at a time when the county is constrained with blood supplies and little information on blood donors. Speaking on the same, Dr. Gilchrist Lokoel the County Director for Medical Services said that the App will contribute towards a lasting solution to the problems created by persons who take advantage of the acute blood shortage in the county to peddle unconfirmed rumors and malice.
While appreciating the 75 people who had been registered to the platform at the LCRH during the most recent blood donation drive, Dr. Lokoel called upon residents to embrace the innovation by registering in big numbers. He added that the more people that use the platform the higher the chance of running successful blood donation drives.
Samuel Kapengi, Head of the blood transfusion services in Turkana, said that all willing donors will also be requested to register on the platform which had the advantage of placing the blood donation information on the national grid for use by all hospitals in saving people from life-threatening medical conditions.
Speaking on behalf of DSL, one of the co-founders of the platform Francis Kilemi thanked the County Government of Turkana for embracing the Damu-Sasa technology, adding that the platform was built with a view to saving lives by ensuring that blood was available when and where it was needed.
Mr. Kilemi expressed optimism that more counties will follow the example of Turkana County in meeting their own blood transfusion needs while simultaneously serving the nationwide needs of patients across the country.
