Chronic conditions & anemia 

Chronic disease presents patients and communities with a host of challenges. Anemia, a deficiency in red blood cells, is often one of them. Whether it’s autoimmune diseases or cancer, chronic inflammation or kidney failure, chronic conditions take a toll on the body’s blood.  

There is a two-way relationship between anemia and other chronic conditions: anemia acts both as a related condition to these, but also as a predictor of increased mortality and complications.  Therefore, it places a heavy burden on individual health, quality of life, and the socio-economic situation. On the other hand, improved blood health leads to improved patient outcomes and safety as well as reduced mortality, complications, hospitalizations, healthcare costs and blood transfusion demand. 

Addressing the burden 

To address this burden, medical systems and public officials alike must prioritize blood health for at-risk patients.  

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently released guidance entitled  “Implementing patient blood management (PBM) to improve global blood health status” to provide health systems with practical approaches to advancing blood health. GAfPA has launched its own blood health initiative to help prioritize blood health in the context of the most common non-communicable diseases like CVD, CKD, Cancer, Inflammatory Conditions, Obesity and also within the Women’s Health & Patient Safety dialogue. 

To empower stakeholders to advocate for the prioritization of Blood Health, GAfPA is convening an online briefing. 

AGENDA   

About the Global Alliance for Patient Access  

The Global Alliance for Patient Access (GAfPA) is a not-for-profit international platform for patient advocates and healthcare providers seeking to raise awareness about the benefits of patient-centered healthcare and advocate for patients’ access to approved medical therapies and appropriate clinical care. 

For more information, contact Kalina Bozhkova, Director, European Alliance for Patient Access, at [email protected]