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New Blood Bank Named for Dr. Habib Sadauki
March 18, 2009
Dr. Habib Sadauki was honored on February 6 for his long-standing dedication to health care in Kano. |
Kano, Nigeria: Pathfinder is pleased to announce that on February 6, 2009, the Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital In Northern Nigeria opened a new blood bank named in honor of Pathfinder’s Nigerian project director for the Continuum of Care: Addressing Postpartum Hemorrhage project, Dr. Habib Sadauki. Dr. Sadauki was recognized for his long-standing dedication to ending maternal mortality in Nigeria.
Dr. Sadauki became interested in finding ways to address maternal mortality while a medical officer at Murtala Mohammad in the 1980s. After two years at one of the oldest and largest hospitals in Nigeria, Dr. Sadauki left for specialist training at Ahmadu Bello University in Northern Nigeria. He later went on to the United Kingdom for additional training and became a member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. In 1993, he returned to his home state of Kano to work as a consultant Ob/Gyn in the maternity unit of Murtala Mohammad.
Now with Pathfinder, Dr. Sadauki is dedicated to eradicating postpartum hemorrhage in Kano and throughout Nigeria. One of the most challenging problems has been the lack of blood for patients suffering from postpartum hemorrhage complications. Murtala Mohammad sees on average more than 3,000 deliveries a month—most of which involve complications since the hospital is a tertiary care facility for patients seeking urgent, specialized care. It also has had one of the highest maternal mortalities from postpartum hemorrhage. Yet the hospital had no blood bank on site and patients often had to wait more than five hours for blood to be found and brought to the maternity ward.
At the onset of the Continuum of Care project, Dr. Sadauki began a dedicated advocacy campaign with hospital authorities, the hospital services management board, and the Kano Ministry of Health to find a solution to the problem of blood availability in the maternity unit of Murtala Mohammad. Dr. Sadauki knew that in order to truly reduce maternal mortality, providing access to blood without delay for patients was a critical component of the continuum of care model.
Impressed and persuaded by Dr. Sadauki, local authorities agreed to build and equip a blood bank within the maternity unit of the hospital. A building was constructed and outfitted with blood banking units capable of storing 800 pints of blood and a side laboratory was created for blood typing, screening (including HIV and Hepatitis), and other services. Attached to the blood bank is a comfortable waiting area for blood donors and an examination room for donating.
Dr. Sadauki said of the new unit, “A woman in this serious condition must have ready access to blood transfusions. This undoubtedly is a major development and will go a long way in reducing maternal mortality from postpartum hemorrhage. I am very happy this place is named after me as an appreciation for my contributions. I will continue in whatever capacity I may find myself to contribute to the health system in Kano State—this is only a small promise I can give in reciprocation for this honor.”
Dr. Abdelhadi Eltahir, Pathfinder’s Senior Maternal and Newborn Health Advisor spoke with the Director of Mohammad Murtala a month after the opening. Dr. Eltahir said, “The first thing he started discussing when I met him was the blood bank. He enthusiastically talked about the many lives that are being saved and the shortened waiting time between the arrival of a woman and the transfusion.”
Previously, patients might face a wait of more than five hours. Now, with the new blood bank, it is less than ten meters from the ward. Dr Eltahir said, “Availability of emergency blood is not commonly practiced in the developing countries. That is one of the accomplishments not only of Dr. Sadauki with this hospital, but one of the big achievements of Pathfinder and the Continuum of Care project. Dr. Sadauki presents this accomplishment in a very humble way—he’s a very humble man. But this is a big achievement. I applaud him for that.”
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