Blood transfusion
Blood transfusion service became available in Bangladesh at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital in 1950. Professional blood donors were the mainstay of blood donation in Bangladesh, with 47% of donated blood coming from professional donors as late as the year 2000. The potential for contamination in the supply, and the need for volunteer donors was well recognised. An estimate from 2011 is that of the 500,000 units of blood required annually, only 25% come from voluntary donation, 20–25% from paid donors, and 50–55% from one-time donation for a specific patient.