Blood donation campaign in UAE kicks off

A senior doctor has urged people to donate blood to make up for the shortfall during summer as the donated blood will help cancer patients, mothers with pregnancy complications and trauma and burn victims. On Blood Donor Day on Tuesday, Dr Laila Al Shaer, director of Dubai Blood Donation Centre, said a five-day campaign will be run to collect blood and blood products from donors. Article continues below Blood donors will not receive payment but their contribution in saving lives is recognised by the Dubai Health Authority and the Ministry of Health. The blood is needed due to the high number of traffic accidents in the country daily. Dr Al Shaer said about 45 per cent of the of the blood received is used for Thalassemia patients. A patient with this blood disorder requires transfusions to keep alive. This disorder affects both Emiratis and people from the sub-continent and the Philippines. The Blood Donation Centre, the only one in Dubai is located at Al Wasl Hospital and supplies blood to 27 private and government hospitals in Dubai. Every summer there is a near shortfall in blood supplies because many residents go away for their summer vacations. "This annual event focuses on the need for more people to donate blood regularly to ensure sufficient supply of blood and its derivatives," said the doctor. She also highlighted the need for people to donate blood products like plasma and platelets. "While people are aware of the need to donate whole blood, we need to create awareness of the need to donate plasma and platelets," she said. The process of collection of blood products is the same, except, collection of blood products takes 45 minutes as compared to collection of whole blood, which takes only15 minutes. The platelets are very important for patients who have undergone cancer therapy. Dr Al Shaer said last year the centre was able to collect 32,808 units of blood, the highest collection as compared to other blood banks across the emirates. A unit is about half a litre. The World Health Organisation estimates that the world needs of blood can be met if the donated blood supply from between one to 3 percent of a country's population. Dr Al Shaer said, "Statistics indicate the percentage of donors at the Centre is 1.13 percent of the active population of the city of Dubai. This is an acceptable rate in the countries of low income, but we have an ambition to reach 4.54 per cent as is the case in countries with higher income or developed countries." Those interested can contact the centre at (04) 2193221 or contact the DHA toll free number 800 342.