**3. Management of blood supply and blood demand to ensure international health security**

## **3.1 Why and how improper management of blood supply and blood demand and the resulting blood shortages are an international health security threat**

The recent conception of global health presents it as a security issue instead of only a humanitarian or health problem. To achieve national security, we need

#### *Management of Blood Supply and Blood Demand to Ensure International Health Security DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96128*

to look beyond military dominance and take into account societal matters such as health, education and poverty as security threats [6]. When speaking about health issues related to health security, maintaining an adequate and stable supply of safe blood is the backbone, since blood shortages are a global threat to health security. The availability of an adequate supply of safe blood and blood components is crucial for managing many cases. BTS are an integral part of healthcare services, and blood and blood products can neither be synthesized nor stored for a long period. Platelets' shelf life is 5–7 days, while the shelf life of red blood cells is up to 42 days depending on the type of preservative solution used [7, 8]. Therefore, maintaining an adequate supply of safe blood by appropriately managing blood supply and blood demand is the only solution. To manage the blood inventory properly, the measures and strategies developed by the WHO should be implemented (**Table 1**). A failure to manage blood supply and blood demand and the resulting blood shortage will negatively affect blood transfusion and health services, and as a result, many patients may die or suffer unnecessarily. In addition, blood shortages have negative economic ramifications due to unpleasant consequences such as postponement of surgeries, prolongation of some diseases and increasing hospital stay duration. The subsequent failure and collapse of the health system will lead to health insecurity. The latter, adding to the adverse economic effects, will lead to societal insecurity, which leads to political insecurity and ultimately national and international insecurity. Thus, the improper management of blood supply and blood demand is not only an international health security threat, but can also extend beyond that, causing international insecurity (**Figure 1**). Health insecurity begins as a local problem, but if the problem is not well addressed and corrected, it will appear in other countries and become a global problem. In many countries, the health system's failure is one of the main factors leading to the government's failure. Consequences of the latter, such as violence and the appearance of refugees, will affect neighbouring countries and exacerbate national and international security problems. Therefore, governments should deal with any significant health problems as if they were threats to national security because the health system's stability is reflected in social and political stability. This can be done through regular and effective communication between the health authorities and politicians. The main advantage of considering health issues as international security threats is that countries will work together to develop policies, preventive measures, new vaccines and treatments, and support developing countries financially and scientifically. Thus, health crises will be adequately managed, resulting in a better outcome.


• Optimising blood usage for patient health

#### **Table 1.**

*The WHO's global strategic plan for universal access to safe blood transfusions [10].*

#### *Contemporary Developments and Perspectives in International Health Security - Volume 2*

**Figure 1.**

*Consequences of improper management of blood supply and blood demand.*

Furthermore, linking health issues with global security is vital because it will bring more political attention and support, thus helping maintain global health security in favourable and stable situations [9]. In addition, this will help countries with poor health systems to benefit from international organizations such as the WHO.

#### **3.2 Access to an adequate supply of safe blood**

Globally, there is an increased need for blood and blood components to meet continuous demand. However, many patients requiring transfusion do not have

*Management of Blood Supply and Blood Demand to Ensure International Health Security DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96128*

access to an adequate amount of safe blood at the proper time, and as a consequence, their health outcomes are negatively affected. The WHO recommends that 1–3% of the population should donate blood to meet a country's requirements. According to the WHO, each year, 80 million blood units are donated worldwide, mainly in developed countries. Rural and remote areas of countries have less access to safe blood than urban areas [10]. The prevalence of bloodborne infections has been reported as the lowest among voluntary non-remunerated blood donors; therefore, these blood donations are the safest option [10]. In some countries, a lack of blood supply forces healthcare professionals and patients' relatives to look for paid donors, increasing the risk of unsafe blood. Other factors that lead to an inadequate supply of safe blood include a shortage of trained blood bank staff or test kits, the use of low-quality reagents, a lack of appropriate cold chain facilities, and poor-quality assurance. Unfortunately, these issues are exacerbated by the globally increasing need for blood. To maintain an adequate supply of safe blood globally, the WHO developed evidenced-based strategies (**Table 1**). It is recommended that existing partnerships are maintained and new national and multinational partnerships are built to strengthen the global support for developing countries in terms of increasing access to safe blood. International collaboration in sharing excess supplies continues to grow at a remarkable rate and positively related to the impact on BTS.

#### **3.3 Management of blood supply and blood demand**

In response to this potential problem, the WHO and other organisations and societies approved global health policies and international health regulations to deal with all aspects of blood donations and transfusion. Collaboration between developed and developing countries is needed to ensure the transfer of novel technologies and updated scientific materials to implement the international health regulations and improve public health systems, thereby strengthening global public health [11]. This is called health diplomacy. Many measures should be implemented to manage blood supply and blood demand to avoid any sudden blood shortage. These measures may include monitoring blood supplies, using blood only in emergencies during crises, implementing patient blood management (PBM) [12–14] as an effective blood conservation method [15], educating and motivating people regarding blood donation through accessible and comfortable blood donation centres and using all available social media and other forms of advertising (**Table 2**). Among these methods of managing the blood inventory, the most effective one is PBM. The latter is defined as an evidence-based patient care strategy that optimises patients' outcomes using pharmacological medications and patients' blood [16]. In February 2020, the WHO called for the PBM strategy to be implemented after endorsing it in 2010 [17, 18]. PBM is a multidisciplinary approach that involves most healthcare staff, including haematologists, oncologists, surgeons, obstetricians, gynaecologists, anaesthesiologists, general practitioners and other clinical specialists. Many peer-reviewed studies indicated that PBM reduces hospital stay length and the chance of blood transmitted diseases, and improves care quality, morbidity and mortality at a reduced cost [19–22].

#### **3.4 Recommendations to improve blood transfusion services and health security**

To ensure proper management of BTS, it is necessary to recognise and fix the current systemic deficiencies affecting BTS in the national health system. These deficiencies include organisational difficulties, insufficient funds, unsafe blood


#### *Specific measures for proper management of blood supply and demand to prevent blood shortages.*

donation, outdated equipment, low quality blood test kits and an inadequate number of qualified personnel. Governments should implement strategies to increase their blood inventories and ensure the collection of safe blood. Countries require their governments' support for their health systems, including BTS, which is a political obligation to guard national health security.

The following are recommendations to help promote public health by ensuring an adequate supply of safe blood.

1.Promote a national blood transfusion services plan and strengthen its management

Current laws, rules and standards that support a statutory structure for blood bank and BTS should be examined and adapted according to the international applications and the WHO's criteria and rules. Special care needs to be taken to ensure proper execution.


*Management of Blood Supply and Blood Demand to Ensure International Health Security DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96128*

a minimal level. It is also necessary to cooperate with the mass media to carry out targeted educational and promotional activities to encourage voluntary non-remunerated blood donation. Effective plans to foster voluntary nonremunerated blood donation include social recruitment at the national level. There is a need to enter into co-partnerships with communities, domestic institutions, and religious and community leaders.


The current budget allocated to the blood banks should be significantly raised to assist the performance of BTS.

	- Blood transfusion service sites:
		- After reassigning tasks according to system reform, special attention must be paid to updating the existing BTS. This applies to the functional and safety requirements of donor selection, blood collection, test processing, and storing of the blood and blood components. Sufficient employee expertise is a prerequisite for BTS to function well.
		- Compulsory standard guidelines should be formulated and adopted to inform the purchasing of special requirements (such as blood collection bags, test kits and other consumables). Training support personnel should also be provided for blood transfusion service stations. These measures will assist in standardising collection procedures and ensuring safe service.
		- The blood banks should use high-quality blood collection bags and optimal anti-coagulant additive solution to prolong the product shelf-life.
		- The quality management system should involve the entire blood chain from prospective donor to prospective recipient, including follow-up plans for monitoring and evaluating all relevant blood bank activities, consistent with WHO standards. Critical screening tests and obligatory quality assurance systems are crucial to ensure the safety of blood supply [24].
		- Current working situations and applications of BTS should be evaluated and improved. Special rules and procedures must be reviewed, focusing on blood handling, disinfection/decontamination and waste disposal procedures.

• Hospital sites:

As the entry point for follow-up, assessing and discussing blood transfusion treatment indications, efficiency and associated side effects, the hospital blood transfusion committee is a vital structure of the blood alert system.


Develop an effective public health plan, focusing on correcting the causes of diseases that require blood transfusion treatment and strengthening the job of primary healthcare, which will reinforce prevention and early diagnosis.

5.Promote regional exchanges and cooperation arrangements between countries:

Territorial integration and collaboration between countries for economic and social development is becoming increasingly important. Regional exchanges and cooperation arrangements should ease the sharing of information on experiences and best practices and allow for the horizontal spread of expertise and technical assistance.

However, unless these measures are systematically implemented and continue throughout the process, while progress is regularly monitored as a section of quality control, obtaining an adequate supply of safe blood and properly functioning blood transfusion services will remain out of reach.
