Elderly Patient Critical After Wrong Blood Transfusion in Odisha; 4 Blood Bank Staff Suspended

Cuttack: In a distressing incident at a private hospital in Odisha’s Cuttack district, an elderly patient, Bhusan Jena (74), became critically ill due to a wrong blood transfusion. This unfortunate situation led to the suspension of four staff members from the Central Red Cross Blood Bank for their gross negligence.

Jena had been hospitalized after suffering a stroke, which resulted in a significant drop in his haemoglobin levels. Initially, the hospital had arranged for blood from another source. However, when the need for additional transfusions arose, doctors directed the family to obtain ‘A’ positive blood units from the Central Red Cross Blood Bank.

Shortly after receiving the transfusion, Mr. Jena’s condition deteriorated rapidly, necessitating his immediate transfer to the ICU. Subsequent testing at a private laboratory revealed a shocking discrepancy: the blood provided, which was labelled ‘A’ positive, turned out to be ‘B’ positive. It was a critical error, exacerbated by the fact that the blood pouch itself was inaccurately labelled.

Jena’s son recounted his efforts to secure the correct blood type, stating that he initially visited the Red Cross blood bank to request ‘A’ positive blood but didn’t have a sample for matching. After obtaining a blood sample, the Red Cross staff conducted cross-matching and provided the blood unit. However, as the transfusion began, Jena experienced severe reactions, leading to a drop in his pulse rate and an urgent transfer to the ICU.

Suspecting a grave error, Jena’s son sought validation from a private lab, which confirmed the mismatched blood type as ‘B’ positive. He emphasized his reluctance to hand over the pouch from the Red Cross, which was the sole evidence of the discrepancy. Despite requests from the Red Cross staff to surrender the pouch for further investigation, he refused, expressing concern that it might be tampered with or misplaced.

Following the public revelation of this incident, the Director of the Central Red Cross Blood Bank announced a thorough investigation into the matter. Further details will be disclosed once the treating physician submits their report.