“The global community shares a common life source: blood. It is the life force in all human beings, regardless of colour, race or religion.”
—President of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
ITHOUT question, there is a measure of truth in that quote. Blood is essential to all human life. It is a precious resource. Are you convinced, though, that it is safe and wise for humans to share that fluid for medical purposes?
As we have learned, worldwide safety standards are highly variable, and treatments with blood are riskier than many assume. Furthermore, physicians differ widely in their use of blood because of education, skills, and viewpoints. Yet, many are increasingly cautious about transfusing blood. A significant and growing number of doctors are showing a preference for medical treatments that avoid the use of blood.
An Inviting Option
“A growing number of hospitals are offering an alternative: ‘bloodless’ surgery,” reported The Wall Street Journal. “Originally developed to accommodate Jehovah’s Witnesses,” states the journal, “the practice has gone mainstream, with many hospitals promoting their bloodless-surgery programs to the general public.” Hospitals around the world are discovering numerous benefits, particularly to patients, when implementing strategies that curtail the use of blood transfusions. Currently, thousands of doctors are treating patients without resorting to transfusions.
That brings us back to a question posed at the outset of the first article of this series. Just what is it that makes blood so valuable? If the medical use of blood is increasingly questionable, is there another purpose that blood fulfills?
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