Progress in blood transfusion services in Kenya from the 1980's: a review.

BACKGROUND Provision of safe and adequate supplies of blood is dependent on a well organised blood transfusion service with dedicated well-trained manpower and resources for the service. OBJECTIVE To provide an overview of the evolution of blood transfusion services in Kenya, from the 1980s to date. DATA SOURCES Various Government of Kenya publications and websites on blood transfusion related issues. Publications and websites of stakeholders including donors and other partners as well. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE The author has been in national blood transfusion administration for over five years. DATA SELECTION Data related to blood transfusion in Kenya on websites and publication were scrutinised. DATA EXTRACTION All selected articles were read. DATA SYNTHESIS All the collected data together with the author's experience were used for this publication. CONCLUSION As part of the effort by the Ministry of Health to reform the health sector, there was need to reorganise departments and divisions within the Ministry. The reorganisation of the blood transfusion service was one such consideration and it was hoped that following this change, there would be better, safer and more efficient provision of blood for transfusion service snation wide. This article documents the evolution of blood transfusion services from the early 1980s to date.