World Blood Donor Day Call for more regular voluntary blood donors |14 June 2022
The Seychelles Commercial Bank team who have voluntarily donated blood to mark this year’s World Blood Donor Day (Photos: Louis Toussaint)
Today, June 14, the world is celebrating a very special day – World Blood Donor Day. Do you know how many people donate blood in the world? A quick search shows us that about 118.54 million blood donations are collected worldwide. 40% of these are collected in high-income countries, home to 16% of the world’s population.
About 13,300 blood centres in 169 countries report collecting a total of 106 million donations. Collections at blood centres vary according to income group.
In Seychelles, according to the chief technologist of the clinical laboratory and blood transfusion centre of Seychelles Hospital, Joanne Michel, in order to sustain the blood bank we need over 2000 units yearly and we never attain this figure.
The day also provides an opportunity to call to action governments and national health authorities to provide adequate resources to increase the collection of blood from voluntary, unpaid blood donors and to manage access to blood and the transfusion of those who require it.
Ms Michel explained that the day was chosen by the World Health Organisation to raise global awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products for transfusion; highlight the critical contribution voluntary, unpaid blood donors make to national health systems and support national blood transfusion services, blood donor organisations and other non-governmental organisations in strengthening and expanding their voluntary blood donor programmes by reinforcing national and local campaigns.
“Blood is a commodity that we cannot buy in the shops and that is why we continuously need people to come donate blood. At the blood bank we are always faced with crisis as we have 50% of the donors who are regular and the 50% are family replacement. WHO recommends that we have 100% of voluntary donors in order not to jeopardize our blood bank; this is something we are aiming for,” shared Ms Michel.
In Seychelles most of our people have blood group A and B. “The demand is very high for blood group O and A and mostly the blood is being used for cancer patients – leukemia, ICU patients, oncology patients, surgeries, leptospirosis and women giving birth. We call on people to become regular donors,” urged Ms Michel.
Elizabeth Banda, senior programme officer for blood donation, noted that “on this day, we take a moment to appreciate the donors who saved the lives of people in the hospital and at the same time to encourage others to come give blood. We have been busy sensitising the community on why they should do it and what are the health benefits of such an act”.
For 2022, the World Blood Donor Day slogan ‘Donating blood is an act of solidarity; Join the effort and save lives’ is to draw attention to the roles that voluntary blood donations play in saving lives and enhancing solidarity within communities.
The specific objectives of this year’s campaign are to thank blood donors in the world and create wider public awareness of the need for regular, unpaid blood donation; highlight the need for committed, year-round blood donation, to maintain adequate supplies and achieve universal and timely access to safe blood transfusion; recognise and promote the values of voluntary unpaid blood donation in enhancing community solidarity and social cohesion and to raise awareness of the need for increased investment from governments to build a sustainable and resilient national blood system and increase collection from voluntary non-remunerated blood donors.
James Savy, a staff of the Seychelles Commercial Bank, is already a regular donor and has donated blood for 17 times in a row.
“I am regular donor and I started donating blood in 2008. Voluntarily I decided to come donate some blood as it is the World Blood Donor Day. I am usually a healthy guy and do not get sick quite often. I try to lead a healthy lifestyle as I do not smoke or consume drugs. I have a sip of alcohol occasionally and I highly recommend people to come forward to donate blood as it contributes towards a healthy life.”
Stephanie Marie, responsible for public relation and marketing at the Seychelles Commercial Bank, noted that “As we heard the call from the blood bank unit, our organisation decided to contribute towards this noble cause on the occasion of World Blood Donor Day. SCB is not only a financial organisation but we also care for the community around us. My appeal is for the public to come forward to donate blood as we never know when there will be an emergency.”
To all blood donors who have saved many lives, thank you and those who are thinking of becoming a donor don’t dither any longer.
Vidya Gappy
