Blood supply equipment in Mongolia improved
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An LDS couple recently enlisted medical know-how and love in their effort to improve the lives of thousands in Mongolia.
Humanitarian Services. Equipment improved nation's capacity to provide services.
Gary and Molly Dolana returned to their home in Highland, Utah, on Nov. 5 after spending more then a month completing a Church humanitarian assignment in the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar. The Dolanas delivered several pieces of equipment needed to improve blood supply services in the Asian country.
Brother and Sister Dolana — who are both retired medical professionals — also taught doctors and blood technicians at Mongolia's National Blood Center how to use and maintain the blood supply equipment.
The center, which is responsible for supplying the country with blood products, has struggled to fulfill its mission because of limited supplies and equipment. The new instruments will now allow Mongolia's doctors and nurses "to provide services within the country that they simply did not have the capacity to provide in the past," Brother Dolana said.
One piece of equipment, which was provided by Church Humanitarian Service, collects precious plasma while returning the blood cells to the donor. It is the first machine of its kind in Mongolia.
"This [instrument] allows the donor to donate plasma once or twice a week, thus greatly increasing the supply of fresh frozen plasma available in a country that is in great need of this blood product," Sister Dolana said. Without specialized equipment that returns blood cells, a donor can give plasma only about every other month.
The first plasma donor to use the new machine was the director of the country's blood center, Sister Dolana said.
The Dolanas also delivered and trained their colleagues in Mongolia on a second instrument designed to collect blood components such as platelets, white cells and stem cells. The instrument is similar to the plasma-separating machine — separating blood products such as platelets while returning the red blood cells to the donor. Again, the procedure increases the efficiency of blood product collection in Mongolia. The platelet machine was donated by International Health Care Corporation in Utah.
In addition to the major pieces of equipment, the Dolanas also delivered a large-capacity centrifuge, a blood bank refrigerator, a freezer designed to store fresh frozen plasma, a platelet incubator and shaker and a coagulation instrument. The new equipment was donated by the Church and other organizations.
Brother and Sister Dolana said they treasured playing a role in the blood equipment project. The couple served a humanitarian mission in Mongolia a few years ago and developed a lasting love and respect for the country's culture and people.
"The experiences we have had in Mongolia have been absolutely life-altering," Brother Dolana said. "It would have been a tragedy had we not accepted that [mission] call."
