Plasma pathways for Low and Middle Income countries – needed more than ever

Abstract

This Commentary addresses the article “Assessing Operational Readiness for Plasma Fractionation within Indonesia’s National Transfusion Medicine System: A Cross-Sectional Mixed-Methods Study” by Roestan et al published in this issue of Blood Transfusion. The authors review the progression of Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC) towards a level of strategic independence of the supply of Plasma Derived Medicinal Products (PDMPS) from global market forces, particularly the paid plasma donor population of the United States (USA). They draw on the Indonesian experience to suggest possible pathways for achieving the goal of accessing PDMPs from a publicly managed blood and plasma collection system.