LAHORE: As many as 25,000 patients have been transfused blood, including of rare groups,donated by the volunteers registered with the emergency Virtual Blood Bank (VBB), a flagship project launched by the Punjab Safe Cities Authority (PSCA) some five months back across the province by expanding the scope of services through police helpline 15.

The programme received an overwhelming response as the number of the eligible registered blood donors swelled from 10,000 to around 70,000, including 2,000 with O-negative blood group, within the first five months of its launch.

As per the VBB record, 40,000 of the total registered volunteer donors across Punjab are police personnel in various ranks (from constable to the senior positions, including SSPs), while others are from various other segments of society, including students, health professionals, social activists, etc.

An official privy to the information says this life-saving facility is available through an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system of the PSCA, an automated phone system that allows callers to interact with the organization through voice and keypad inputs, without needing to speak to a live agent. This system guides the callers through a series of pre-recorded messages or menu options, making it easy for them to access information, report issues, or connect with relevant departments.

“After receiving a call on 15 helpline for blood donation, the agent connects the call to the relevant staff member to have the required information of the patient, relevant hospital, admission record and the disease he/she suffers from,” the official says.

After verification of the information provided by the caller, the PSCA officer connects the registered blood donor with the caller via conference call, ensuring that both could meet at a mutually decided time for the blood donation.

The official says that this scheme has brought revolutionary changes to help resolve the chronic issue of having timely blood transfusion to save lives, particularly of those in dire need of rare blood groups like O-negative, under the slogan, ‘The blood donor of today may be the recipient of tomorrow’.

“The PSCA’s emergency virtual blood bank has registered so far 2,000 volunteer donors with O-negative blood group across Punjab,” the official says, adding that it is one of the largest databases of this particular blood group.

He says Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has issued directions to expand the scope of blood transfusion services to save lives of critical patients, including infants, in the public and private hospitals across the province.

To a question, he said the blood donor agencies, NGOs and blood banks of colleges and universities have been linked to the PSCA blood bank database for expanding the scope of the scheme.

The citizens, students, and members of civil society could also register themselves as blood donors by calling 15 or through the PSCA website.

Additionally, citizens could submit blood donations or request forms at the police facilitation counters (Khidmat Centres) set up in all the public sector hospitals across Punjab.

Recently, he said, Sundas Foundation, the pioneer organisation in the voluntary blood transfusion service for thalassemia patients, has contacted the PSCA’s high-ups for collaboration to enhance the joint efforts to reach out to a maximum number of patients struggling hard for blood transfusion. Both organisations are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) soon.

Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder in which the body makes an abnormal form or an inadequate amount of hemoglobin, so the children suffering from it are in constant need of blood transfusions to survive.

Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2025