Over 75,000 units of blood components are transfused yearly in Rwanda, which is home to a population of approximately 13 million people. In Rwanda, as in much of sub-Saharan Africa, most transfusions are given to anemic children infected with malaria and hemorrhaging obstetric patients. In an effort to improve delivery times and reduce wastage, Rwanda launched a program of drones to deliver blood products to remote, rural hospitals in 2016. To determine if drone delivery was effective, researchers compared the delivery times of drones to estimates from the Regional Centre for Blood Transfusion and Google Maps. Between March 2017 and December 2019, 14,651 units of blood were delivered by drones to 20 rural hospitals. Drone delivery times varied based on location ranging from 24 to 58 minutes; the mean drone delivery time was 49.6 minutes, which was 79 and 98 minutes faster than the estimates from the Regional Centre for Blood Transfusion and Google Maps, respectively (P<0.0001 for both). In addition, blood expiration and wastage was reduced by 67% compared to delivery by ambulance. Drone delivery of blood products and other life-saving medical supplies could improve patient care.
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