From the community

Greetings from India!

I'm Dr. Nishith A. Vachhani. On August 28, 2024, I reached a milestone in my life: I completed my 100th blood donation. My journey began in 2001 during my college years when a visit to a friend's clinical pathology lab changed everything.

I still remember that day clearly. While visiting my friend at a gynaecologist’s hospital, he suddenly asked, "Nishith, what's your blood group?" I replied, "O Positive," wondering why he was asking. He spoke to the gynaecologist, explaining that there was a 24-year-old pregnant woman in the emergency department with severe labor pains. She was a poor factory worker with very low hemoglobin, and her husband couldn’t be reached. The blood bank had no O Positive blood. He looked at me and asked, "Will you donate for her?" Without hesitation, I said, "Yes." That simple act saved her life, and she delivered a healthy baby girl without complications. It was a profound realization of how one act of kindness can save a life.

That day marked the beginning of my journey as a blood donor. Initially, I donated whole blood whenever I could. In June 2014, I joined Life Blood Centre, Rajkot, as a Quality Manager. On July 13, 2015, Dr. Sajid asked if I could donate platelets instead of whole blood, and once again, I said "Yes." Today, I’ve completed 100 donations, including 9 whole blood donations and 91 Single Donor Platelet (SDP) donations.

What an extraordinary journey it has been! As a Centurion blood donor, I am filled with pride—not because of the number of donations, but because of the lives I’ve had the privilege to help save. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve humanity in this profound way.

Launch of Talking Transfusion: The Transfusion Evidence Round-Up Podcast!

ISBT, in collaboration with the Systematic Review Initiative (SRI), is proud to announce the launch of Talking Transfusion: The Transfusion Evidence Round-Up Podcast. This new podcast series is dedicated to bringing the latest systematic reviews and randomized trials on transfusion-related topics to the transfusion community.

Join us as we explore groundbreaking research and provide expert insights that can make a real difference in patient outcomes.