World Blood Donor Day 2019

This recurring event is important to me because I have Common Variable Immunodeficiency (CVID), and I would not be here without immunoglobulins, a resulting product from donations.

Visiting a blood bank

I received a request to visit the local blood bank because the 14th of June 2019 was World Blood Donor Day, I want to show my appreciation. Therefore, I accepted the request. I am not sure what is exactly expected of me. At
least I will talk with blood donors about their experiences and my own
concerning the importance of donating blood. Maybe I should bring a
small gift too!

Safe blood for all

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has started a campaign to promote donating blood. They have developed the slogan “Safe blood for all”
to raise awareness of the universal need for safe blood in the delivery
of health care and the crucial roles that voluntary donations play in
achieving the goal of universal health coverage. Hence, why World Blood Donor Day is important for the WHO as well.

Key messages

A couple of the key messages of this campaign are:

  • Every few seconds, someone, somewhere, needs blood.
  • Therefore, transfusions of blood and blood products save millions of lives every year.
  • Furthermore, access to safe blood and blood products is essential for universal
    health coverage and a key component of effective health systems.
  • Lastly, health is a human right; everyone in the world should have access to
    safe blood transfusions, when and where they need them.

More information

The campaign of the WHO can be found here. For more information about donating blood, I want to refer you to https://www.sanquin.nl/
or your local blood bank. Applying to be a blood donor should be easy!
Just plan a visit to your local blood bank and let them help you help
others. For more information about CVID, please go to https://stichtingvoorafweerstoornissen.nl/ or feel free to get in touch with me.