Vouchers instead of snacks: ministry checks hospitals in Pazardzhik and Ruse
Blood donors are entitled to food right after donating, the Health Ministry says. In Pazardzhik, food is being served on site again from Friday.
Symbolic image · Photo: R. Henrik Nilsson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Following a report by public broadcaster BNT, Bulgaria's Health Ministry is examining why transfusion haematology departments in Pazardzhik and Ruse give blood donors shopping vouchers instead of a snack. Minister Katya Ivkova ordered a "rapid inspection" and said action would follow if violations were confirmed. Under the relevant ordinance, facilities must provide donors with restorative food worth 8 leva (about 4 euros), and the state pays 4.09 euros per donor for it.
The ministry stresses that the right to food immediately after donation is part of the medical standard and that vouchers do not meet this requirement. The hospital in Pazardzhik said it had chosen vouchers because of allergy and dietary risks, but it has cancelled the tender and has been providing food on site since 16 October. Medika University Hospital in Ruse plans to switch from Monday, while Kanev Hospital in Ruse, which also issues vouchers, did not respond to BNT's inquiry.
Prof. Veselka Duleva, head of the food and nutrition department at the National Centre of Public Health and Analyses, said donors mainly need fluids and quick energy on site. Wafers or crackers provide some energy but do not replace lost volume, so fruit juice, water, chocolate and coffee are recommended. There is still no regulation specifying what the food should consist of.