Taylor Foster (left) and family donate blood in March
(CNS Local Life): The Cayman Islands Blood Bank has joined countries across the globe in celebration of World Blood Donor Day 14 June, with a focus on blood donation as an action of community solidarity and collaboration. “Our upcoming and continuing partnership initiatives with various local businesses tie perfectly into the theme of this year’s World Blood Donor campaign: ‘Be there for someone else. Give blood. Share life’,” said Health Services Authority (HSA) laboratory manager Judith Clarke.
‘The theme draws attention to the roles that voluntary donation systems, including our generous sponsors and devoted donors, play in encouraging people to care for one another and generate social ties and a united community.
“We are inspired by the alacrity, compassion and altruistic efforts of all our corporate sponsors, service organisations and community supporters including current partners towards raising wider awareness of blood donation’s benefit to all of society.”
As regional leaders in blood donation, the Cayman Islands national Joint Commission International-accredited blood bank looks for new partnership opportunities and events that allow them to celebrate individuals who donate blood, encourage potential donors and develop a local culture of committed, year-round blood donation, the HSA said in a press release. Among these is the Celebrate Cayman Summer Festival, set for 23 June, part of the yearlong 60th anniversary celebration of the Coat of Arms. The Cayman Islands Blood Bank will join other organisations as they run interactive booths at the event to be held in downtown George Town.
Transfusion of blood and blood products helps save millions of lives every year. Cayman’s national blood service provides patients access to safe blood and blood products, which is a key component of an effective health system, said the HSA.
An adequate supply can only be ensured through regular donations by voluntary, unpaid blood donors. However, in many countries, blood services face the challenge of making sufficient blood available, while also ensuring its quality and safety. Cayman’s donor to population ratio is 1.9-2 percent, which is far below the 5 percent as suggested by the World Health Organisation.
“Our national blood bank, which is ranked among the top 10 blood services within the region, is making every effort to bring our ratio up to the optimal 5 percent required,” said Clarke.
“Our blood donors are the lifeline to our organisation and lifesavers to many who have survived potentially fatal conditions, complex medical and surgical procedures, accidents and natural disasters. We hope that more individuals will share their enthusiasm as we continue to educate the public about the importance of blood donation.”
For more information about the Blood Bank, go to its website website or call 244-2674
As a longtime regular donor, with an exotic and necessary blood type, I have withdrawn from this program, in the knowledge that my freely-given life-saving blood was being passed (or sold) along from HSA to the private elective surgery Health City, where their pay-to-play procedures consume 9-15 pints of public donor supply per operation. Every time I gave blood there was a one-sided personal risk of something going wrong – a risk that I accepted, in exchange for honesty. It’s disrespectful to continue to appeal to the public (and repeated donor list – again and again) without first disclosing that their replenished life-giving essential working materials are also being routed to a for-profit business – freely churning through the public’s “banked reserves” without disincentive! Q. How would you feel if you gave a highly personal and heartfelt gift to someone you trusted, and then moments later saw it listed on Ecaytrade?
I would if they allowed me to!!!! Because I was in college in the UK 30+ years ago they still refuse to accept my donation. Even though they accepted it for the initial 5 years after my return. Guess I must somehow have mad cow and stil be alive.
BSE incubation period is up to 50 yrs in humans. #science
Thatcher ate British beef. Mad cow is real.