A study on Knowledge and Awareness about Blood Donation among Undergraduate Medical Students in a Tertiary Care Centre in Haryana, India

Abstract

Introduction :This study was undertaken to study Knowledge and Awareness about Blood Donation among Undergraduate Medical Students which would serve the dual purpose of stimulating the curiosity of medical students about safe blood bank practises and at the same time lets the teaching staff know about those areas of the subject where they need to focus while teaching the students. There is paucity of studies on this subject in Northern India. Material & Methods :The study was conducted on 150 2nd year MBBS students of 2017 entrance batch of this tertiary care centre by the Department of Pathology. A questionnaire covering various aspects of blood donation was prepared. The answers were analysed to know the particular areas where the teachers need to focus while educating the students on the subject of blood donation. Scoring was done out of maximum 20 marks. Results :18 students scored between 5 and 10 marks. 115 students scored between 10 and 15 marks and 17 scored between 15 and 20 marks. The students showed good knowledge about blood donor requirements, preservation of donated blood and about mismatched transfusions. However, they showed lack of knowledge in fields of transfusion transmissible infections, blood fractions and sophisticated blood banking procedures. Conclusions :Assessing the knowledge of medical students about blood transfusion through questionnaire serves the dual purpose of stimulating the curiosity of medical students about safe blood bank practises and at the same time lets the teaching staff know about those areas of the subject where they need to focus while teaching the students.