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This story is from June 14, 2009
A cry for blood!
On World Blood Donor Day, TOI finds that there has been a welcome change of heart among Chennaiites on voluntary blood donation
���Blood is thicker than water��� might be an adage that is used to emphasise the strength of the bond that exists between an individual and his kin.
But then, Chennaiites seem to have realised that you don���t have to donate blood only if a friend or relative is in need of it. How else would you justify the quantum leap in the number of voluntary blood donors here?
Says P Sivaraj, chairman of the Indian Red Cross Society���s (IRCS) Tamil Nadu branch, ���In the seventies, only one per cent of the donors were voluntary donors.
The other 99 per cent were either professional donors or relatives. Today, 80 to 85 per cent of donors are voluntary donors.���
And agreeing with him is Suresh, a senior manager at Lions Blood Bank, Egmore. ���Eleven years back, around 4,500 people donated blood per year. Now, the number is around 22,000. Multiply that by three and you have 66,000 units of blood ��� the amount that is collected by us in a year. The willingness to donate blood has increased and the primary reason for that is awareness,��� he says.
So, what are the benefits that a donor gets? ���Chances of donors getting heart attacks are less. Men are more at risk than women when it comes to being affected by heart attacks. But by donating blood, they can minimise the chances of suffering a heart attack. Also, every time you donate blood, all your blood cells get refreshed. And people take extra care of themselves after donating blood,��� he explains.
Point out to him that there are apprehensions about certain risks involved in donating blood like contracting diseases, and he retorts, ���There are donors who have donated blood over a 100 times. They are fit as a fiddle. There is absolutely no risk in donating blood.���
Thanks to the media, people in the cities have been volunteering to donate blood. However, the situation in rural areas needs to improve. ���In major cities like Chennai, we are able to meet requirements. But in hospitals at the district and taluk levels, we are unable to get enough blood to meet requirements,��� points out Sivaraj, who also says that they have been receiving ample support from both the National Aids Control Organisation (NACO) and the Tamil Nadu State Aids Control Society (TANSACS).
He signs off by giving details of what the IRCS plans to do this World Blood Donor Day. ���This year, we have instructed all the district branches of the Red Cross to conduct voluntary blood donation camps and create awareness on voluntary blood donation. For this purpose, TANSACS has provided a sum of Rs 10,000 to each of the district branches.���
But then, Chennaiites seem to have realised that you don���t have to donate blood only if a friend or relative is in need of it. How else would you justify the quantum leap in the number of voluntary blood donors here?
Says P Sivaraj, chairman of the Indian Red Cross Society���s (IRCS) Tamil Nadu branch, ���In the seventies, only one per cent of the donors were voluntary donors.
And agreeing with him is Suresh, a senior manager at Lions Blood Bank, Egmore. ���Eleven years back, around 4,500 people donated blood per year. Now, the number is around 22,000. Multiply that by three and you have 66,000 units of blood ��� the amount that is collected by us in a year. The willingness to donate blood has increased and the primary reason for that is awareness,��� he says.
���We give awareness speeches in colleges and during these speeches, we explain the benefits that donors get to enjoy,��� he adds.
So, what are the benefits that a donor gets? ���Chances of donors getting heart attacks are less. Men are more at risk than women when it comes to being affected by heart attacks. But by donating blood, they can minimise the chances of suffering a heart attack. Also, every time you donate blood, all your blood cells get refreshed. And people take extra care of themselves after donating blood,��� he explains.
Point out to him that there are apprehensions about certain risks involved in donating blood like contracting diseases, and he retorts, ���There are donors who have donated blood over a 100 times. They are fit as a fiddle. There is absolutely no risk in donating blood.���
Thanks to the media, people in the cities have been volunteering to donate blood. However, the situation in rural areas needs to improve. ���In major cities like Chennai, we are able to meet requirements. But in hospitals at the district and taluk levels, we are unable to get enough blood to meet requirements,��� points out Sivaraj, who also says that they have been receiving ample support from both the National Aids Control Organisation (NACO) and the Tamil Nadu State Aids Control Society (TANSACS).
He signs off by giving details of what the IRCS plans to do this World Blood Donor Day. ���This year, we have instructed all the district branches of the Red Cross to conduct voluntary blood donation camps and create awareness on voluntary blood donation. For this purpose, TANSACS has provided a sum of Rs 10,000 to each of the district branches.���
End of Article
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