Health + Tech | Using tech to revolutionise blood donation

Hospitals are continually faced with a shortage of blood and are always appealing for more. With Jamaica’s high rate of motor vehicle accidents and other issues that lead to a reliance on blood donation in the healthcare system, it is imperative that we try to solve this problem as best as we can. Technology continues to evolve, and we can use this to our advantage to modernise our blood donation system and make the process of blood donation and awareness easier, more efficient, responsive to client’s needs and thereby move closer to meeting the national demand.

By using mobile apps, artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain, we could see significant improvements in our blood donation process for both donors and recipients. Mobile apps can be used to garner more blood donors at the times of most need. These can utilise the existing donors in the database and send reminders to them when they can donate blood again after their previous efforts. They could get an alert on their phone that would also use geolocation to inform them of the closest blood donation site or blood drive to them at which they could donate. The app could also be used to urge persons who haven’t donated to make it a part of their plans as well as show an updated list of blood drives throughout the year that people can easily access and schedule donations at their convenience. A blood donation app could be used to connect hospitals and sync to a national database that tracks blood levels in real time. This can help to inform people of the state of the blood services in real time and with up-to-date information encouraging them to donate.

Artificial intelligence can play a crucial role in blood donations. Persons with rare blood types have long had difficulty getting matches especially with the constant general shortage of blood. This is where AI can bridge the gap. Through a national registry, the technology can be used to match donors with rare blood types to those in need quickly and efficiently, then alert them through the app to donate to save a life. This would make it quicker and easier to locate a suitable donor, especially in an emergency and create more awareness of the impact and importance of blood donation at the individual level.

AI can be used to predict future blood needs based on historical trends, patient data, societal issues such as the levels of crime and violence, motor vehicle accidents, childbirth and seasonal variations in blood demand. This can enable health authorities to be more proactive in terms of blood donation. Knowing when to ramp up their activities to increase blood supply would go a far way in terms of preparation instead of being caught in a continuous crisis.

The technology could also monitor the profile of the donor pool to identify persons who are at higher risk of developing conditions that may result in them being unable to donate blood. With this information at our fingertips, we could be in a better position to educate and guide donors so that they understand the importance of regular donations and how they can contribute to saving lives. Doing this through the app could help to reduce the spend on public education, resulting in cost savings.

SYSTEMATIC APPROACH

Blockchain is another way in which we could advance the way we approach blood donations. Blockchain can be viewed as a set of data that remains in place with somewhat of a time stamp. It prevents information tampering and provides a comprehensive log of everything that is included in the database in a systematic way. This can provide a transparent, secure, and tamper-proof record of every blood transaction, thereby improving the trust and accountability of the blood donation process.

Blockchain would enable quick verification of blood matches, which could reduce waiting times and improve response times in emergency situations. For donors, this could mean knowing exactly how their contributions are being used, further encouraging them to give regularly.

Mobile apps, AI, and blockchain could create a more robust, responsive, and sustainable blood donation network, which could save more lives and improve the overall quality of healthcare.

Doug Halsall is the chairman and CEO of Advanced Integrated Systems. Email feedback to doug.halsall@gmail.com and editorial@gleanerjm.com.