With the rampant increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in the city, the need for plasma donors has also increased. In such a case to encourage Plasma donation, Government College and Medical Hospital (GMCH) will now give Rs 2,000 to each donor under the Project Platina initiated by the Department of Medical Education and Medicine, under the leadership of the Government of Maharashtra.
Considering the current scenario Plasma therapy (Novel Coronavirus Assessment) is the need of the hour. Demand for Covalent Plasma (CP) has been growing significantly, due to the spate of corona cases in the state and a very few donors are coming forward to donate. Earlier, there was a provision of only 500, which barely use to cover the travel, food, and loss of employment cost of these patients.
So far 20 donors donated at GMCH and 10 donors have donated at Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital (IGMCH). However, with an increase in critical cases of the virus borne disease, this number of CP donors should be increased.
What is Plasma Therapy?
Convalescent plasma or plasma therapy uses blood from people who’ve recovered from an illness to help others recover.
Blood donated by people who’ve recovered from COVID-19 has antibodies to the virus that causes it. The donated blood is processed to remove blood cells, leaving behind liquid (plasma) and antibodies. These can be given to people with COVID-19 to boost their ability to fight the virus.
Around 350 plasma bags to patients in State
About 900 bags of Convalescent Plasma (CP) have been made available in the state so far. Of these, 350 plasma bags have been given to the patients.