Life Bank, a health startup has launched its digital blood and oxygen bank in Ibadan. According to the health ministry, Nigeria needs up to 1.8 million units of blood every year, but the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS) collects only about 66,000 units per year, leaving a deficit of more than 1.7 million pints of blood. Due to the absence of a centralised blood supply body and a deficit in blood donations, many patients die before they receive the blood they require.
Inspired by the complications she faced during the birth of her first child, Temie Giwa-Tubosun founded LifeBank to save lives by speeding up blood and oxygen donations and deliveries from labs across the country to patients and doctors in hospitals. The technology and logistics startup works by encouraging voluntary blood donation and providing a platform for hospitals to request for blood deliveries. A web application allows people to register as voluntary blood donors, book an appointment and find the nearest blood bank where blood donors are needed.
As at January 2017, the company has helped deliver over 2000 pints of blood to patients. It boasts of saving up to 9,076 lives and serving 1,131 hospitals since its inception.
At life bank, we give a service that makes the difference between life and death for so many people –
Temie Giwa-Tubosun, Founder of LifeBank
Founded in Lagos State in January 2016, LifeBank has since then expanded to Abuja, Portharcourt and now, Ibadan. The main challenge faced by the logistics arm of the business is making deliveries amidst traffic. Motorbikes are presently used to make deliveries to get ahead of traffic.
The startup is determined to grow to up to a million active donors and reach every hospital within the cities they cover.
