Ibadan: Dr Wale Egbewunmi, the Coordinator, South West Zonal Centre, National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS), Ibadan has decried the low patronage of the facility by tertiary hospitals in the zone.

He said in Ibadan on Wednesday that most tertiary hospitals now set up their own blood banks, which he said was against the ethics of the medical profession.

Egbewunmi said the Federal Government had already introduced a national policy on the establishment of a centralised blood service centre to screen and distribute blood to all hospitals.

He noted that between January and March, the centre received 420 units of blood per month donated by individuals, while in April, about 150 units were recorded.

Egbewunmi said 700 units of blood were received in May and June, while 415 units were recorded for July.

He said most of the blood donors registered at the centre were students, adding that more people were beginning to respond to appeals for blood donation.

Egbewunmi appealed to the public and stakeholders in the health sector to rally support for the NBTS to enable it to come to aid of those who had to pay outrageous bills at hospitals to have access to blood.

He also appealed to philanthropists and public spirited Nigerians to support the service by providing diesel to power its generator, adding that irregular electricity supply had been a major problem of the centre. (NAN)