COVID-19: Oman urges healthy citizens to donate blood plasma

Muscat: The Department of Blood Bank Services (DBBS) of Oman’s Ministry of Health has urged those who have recovered from COVID-19 to come forward to donate plasma.

Plasma is the largest part of our blood, which when separated from the rest of the blood, is a light yellow liquid. Plasma carries water, salts and enzymes and takes nutrients, hormones, and proteins to the parts of the body that need it.

In a statement shared in the Social Media handle of the DBBS, the Ministry of Health had mentioned that the need for immune plasma is still urgent, as it is used for the treatment protocol for some critical cases of COVID-19 patients.

The series of public appeal messages also asked volunteers who had suffered from the ravages of COVID19 to use their recovery for the greater good of helping other patients.

One unit of plasma donated could potentially help three patients, the note informed. The Blood Bank tries to make it as convenient as possible for blood donors by visiting many offices, factories and school. “Even the busiest people make time to give blood. When you stop to think of all the good your blood can do, we believe you might decide you are not too busy after all to spare less than four hours in a year,” the statement said.

Plasma extraction is done by a device that draws and separates blood, which takes about 40-60 minutes, and the donor can donate plasma once every 7 days. Donating plasma does not affect the donor’s acquired immunity against the coronavirus.

Minister of Health Dr. Ahmed Al Said, said during one of the recent press conferences that the number of plasma donors during the month of August reached 221. The total number of donors, who donated more than 2011 units since the beginning of the pandemic has reached 911, the Minister informed.