Abstract:

Introduction: Blood can only be given from generous donors. Blood donation is necessary to maintain an adequate supply of blood to patients who are suffering from any kind of disease or trauma, which requires them to have a blood transfusion. Currently, there are no global standards used to estimate the national requirements for blood and blood products. The need for blood and blood products is dynamic and is dependent upon health service coverage, the level of health care system and the hospital blood usage.Materials and Methods: A cross sectional observational study was conducted among paramedical students in Govt Medical College, Doda and Kathua of Jammu and Kashmir UT. All the students of first year were approached, sampling was not done. A semi-structured questionnaire on Blood Donation was designed after reviewing the literature from similar studies in the department with consultation of senior faculty. The questionnaire was framed to collect information on demography, knowledge, attitude and practice towards blood donation. A pilot study was undertaken to validate study protocol with a sample of 30 individuals, to know the average time required for completing the questionnaire and to ensure that it is appropriate and understandable to students.Results: A total of 135 Students participated in the study, of whom 77 (57%) were male and 58(43%) females. The age range was 17-27years, the mean age being 19.76 years (Table 1). Those students who had donated blood have more adequate knowledge about blood safety and donation as compared to those who have had never donated blood. This difference was statistically significant (P=0.001). Majority of the participants did not have a complete knowledge regarding the various aspects of voluntary blood donation. The most common reason for their satisfaction was helping others and saving someone’s life.Conclusion: Most of the students have good knowledge and attitude but poor practice towards blood donation. Information, Education and Communication (IEC) activities should be increased and regular seminars should be conducted to increase awareness among medical students for encouraging them to donate blood voluntarily and to motivate others to do so.

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