UPDATED: Minister’s message on World Blood Donor Day:

By Hon. Osbourne Bodden, Minister of Health

Today is the 10th anniversary of World Blood Donor Day, a very important date in the healthcare calendar because the act of giving blood literally means giving the gift of life.

In fact, just a single unit of blood can save up to three people’s lives.

Spearheaded by the World Health Organisation, World Blood Donor Day brings together countries from all around the world to celebrate this life-giving gift.

We in Cayman’s health service industry would like to take the opportunity to thank each and every Cayman resident who selflessly gives blood. Your act of thoughtfulness for others is truly appreciated.

We would also like to encourage others to please give blood. Our supplies at the national Blood Bank in George Town Hospital are 25 per cent lower than optimum levels, so it is extremely important for as many people as possible to join our regular blood donors and do your bit for the good of others.

Please attend the Blood Bank from 8am until 5pm to give blood. It is situated on the second floor of the George Town Hospital across from the Paediatric Ward, and healthcare professionals will be geared up to take your blood and thereby boost the dwindling supplies.

As well as donating your blood on the spot, you can also sign up with the Blood Bank as a potential donor to be contacted if your blood type is needed. If you cannot donate today, make an appointment for another day. The need is constant.

Let’s all do our best to increase blood supplies and ensure that Cayman is properly prepared for any patient who may require the gift of life.

END

Blood Donors Needed!  Give the gift of life…Donate Blood!

The Cayman Islands Health Services Authority is celebrating World Blood Donor Day!

When:  Friday June 14, 8am – 5pm

Where: Cayman Islands Hospital Blood Bank (2nd floor across from Paediatric Ward)

Call 244-2669 or 244-2674 to schedule an appointment.  Walk-ins also available!

A single unit of blood can save up to three lives!

World Blood Donor Day, celebrated on 14 June every year, serves to raise awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products and to thank voluntary unpaid blood donors for their life-saving gifts of blood. With the slogan “Give the gift of life: donate blood”, this year’s campaign, the 10th anniversary of World Blood Donor Day, will focus on the value of donated blood to the patient, not only in saving life, but also in helping people live longer and more productive lives.

Every year 107 million blood donations are collected worldwide. Approximately half of these are collected in high-income countries, home to only 15% of the world’s population.

Many patients requiring transfusion, particularly in developing countries, do not have timely access to safe blood.

Blood collection from voluntary non-remunerated blood donors is the cornerstone of a safe and sufficient blood supply. Regular voluntary blood donors are the safest source of blood, as there are fewer bloodborne infections among these donors than among people who donate for family members in emergencies or who give blood for payment.

In low- and middle-income countries, the greatest use of donated blood is for pregnancy-related complications and severe childhood anaemia.

In high-income countries, transfusion is most commonly used for supportive care in heart surgery, transplant surgery, massive trauma and cancer therapy.

Providing safe and adequate blood through well-organized, national blood systems should be an integral part of every country’s national health-care policy.

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) goal is for all countries to obtain all their blood supplies from 100% voluntary unpaid donors by 2020.

WHO provides policy guidance and technical assistance to support countries to ensure that safe blood and blood products are available and used appropriately for all people who need them.

Every blood donation is a gift of life

The focus for this year’s campaign – the 10th anniversary of World Blood Donor Day – is blood donation as a gift that saves lives. WHO encourages all countries to highlight stories from people whose lives have been saved through blood donation, as a way of motivating regular blood donors to continue giving blood and people in good health who have never given blood, particularly young people, to begin doing so.

The objectives of this year’s campaign are to:

thank blood donors for their life-saving donations;

promote voluntary unpaid blood donation; and

convince ministries of health to commit to achieving self-sufficiency in safe blood and blood products based on 100% voluntary unpaid blood donation.

The host country for World Blood Donor Day 2013 is France. Through its national blood service, the Etablissement Français du Sang (EFS), France has been promoting voluntary non remunerated blood donation since the 1950s. A global event will be held in Paris on 14 June 2013.

Regular voluntary unpaid donors the safest source

“Blood collection from voluntary non-remunerated blood donors is the cornerstone of a safe and sufficient blood supply in all countries. More voluntary blood donors are needed to meet the increasing needs and to improve access to this life-saving therapy,” says Dr Neelam Dhingra, Coordinator for Blood Transfusion Safety at WHO. “Furthermore, the safety and quality of blood and blood products should never be compromised.”

Regular voluntary unpaid blood donors are the safest source of blood as there are fewer bloodborne infections among these donors than among people who give blood in exchange for money or who donate for family members in emergencies.

Achieving 100% supply from voluntary unpaid donors

Currently, 60 countries collect 100% of their blood supply from voluntary unpaid blood donors (35 are high-income countries, 18 middle-income countries and 7 low-income countries).

Six of these countries have achieved this target from a percentage lower than 75% reported in 2004: Cook Islands (from 40%), Kenya (from 53%), Nicaragua (from 41%), Turkey (from 40%), United Arab Emirates (from 59%) and Zambia (from 72%).

However, more progress is needed, with 73 countries still collecting more than 50% of their blood supply from replacement or paid donors.

In low- and middle-income countries, blood transfusion is usually given for the management of complications of pregnancy and childbirth and the treatment of severe childhood anaemia. In high-income countries, transfusion is most commonly used for supportive care in heart surgery, transplant surgery, trauma and cancer therapy.

For more on World Blood Donor Day please go to: http://www.who.int/campaigns/world-blood-donor-day/2013/en/index.html