World Blood Donar Day – 14th June : By K.G. Behl

Every year on 14 June, countries around the world celebrate World Blood Donor Day (WBDD). The event, established in 2004, serves to raise awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products, and to thank blood donors for their voluntary, life-saving gifts of blood. World Blood Donor Day is one of eight official global public health campaigns marked by the World Health Organization (WHO). Health care organizations like “the World Health Organization, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the International Federation of Blood Donor Organizations (IFBDO) and the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT)”
work jointly to organize international level programs to promote people globally. Campaign celebration preparations are carried out by the Council of Europe for many years. The demand of safe blood transfusion is increasing day by day in spite of the blood donation by almost 92 million people every year worldwide. Activities involves organizing
commemorative events, meetings, discussion, debates, quiz competitions, publishing relevant stories in newspapers, scientific conferences, publishing articles worldwide, international scientific journals, sports activities and other promotional activities in the public places, schools, colleges, universities and other educational institutions.
Transfusion of blood and blood products helps save millions of lives every year. It can help patients suffering from life-threatening conditions live longer and with higher quality of life, and supports complex medical and surgical procedures. It also has an essential, life-saving role in maternal and prenatal care. Access to safe and sufficient blood and blood products can help reduce rates of death and disability due to severe bleeding during delivery and after
childbirth.
In many countries, there is not an adequate supply of safe blood, and blood services face the challenge of making sufficient blood available, while also ensuring its quality and safety. An adequate supply can only be assured through regular donations by voluntary unpaid blood donors. The WHO’s goal is for all countries to obtain all their blood supplies from voluntary unpaid donors by 2020. In 2014, 60 countries had their national blood supplies based on
99-100% voluntary unpaid blood donations, with 73 countries still largely dependent on family and paid donors.
The focus of the WBDD 2014 campaign was “Safe blood for saving mothers”. The goal of the campaign was to increase awareness about why timely access to safe blood and blood products is essential for all countries, as part of a comprehensive approach to prevent maternal deaths. According to the World Health Organization, 800 women die every day from pregnancy and childbirth-related complications. Severe bleeding is the cause of 34% of maternal deaths in Africa, 31% in Asia and 21% in Latin America and the Caribbean. The WHO encouraged 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.
Any person can become a hero by giving blood. Blood cannot yet be manufactured artificially blood donation remains vital for healthcare worldwide. Many anonymous blood donors save lives every day through their blood donations.
World Blood Donor Day is celebrated to fulfill the need of blood transfusion and blood products transfusion to the needed person anywhere in the world. This campaign saves more than millions of lives annually and gives a natural smile on the face of blood receiver. Blood transfusion helps patients suffering from variety of life-threatening health conditions and stimulates them to live longer and quality life. It solves the lots of complex medical and surgical
procedures all around the world. This campaign plays a great life-saving role for caring the women during pre and post pregnancy. The theme of 2015 is “Thank you for saving my life”. Off and on we watch on TV advertisement where a small girl thanks somebody for saving her life by giving blood. But the man replies that he never gave blood. The girl still thanks the man saying that she does not who gave the blood but may be one day you give blood to save someone’s life. It prompts one to give blood as it saves life of someone to whom one may not know. It is a noble cause and every healthy person must donate blood every three months as the quantity of blood recoups itself within that period. According to the statistics, it has been noted that only 62 countries are getting sufficient blood supplies from the voluntary and unpaid blood donors whereas 40 countries are still dependent for the blood donations on the patient’s family member or paid donors. It is celebrated to motivate voluntary blood donors in rest of the countries
worldwide for Blood donations to save the life of mothers and babies. In addition it is a day to say thanks to lots of voluntary and unpaid blood donors all around the world for saving millions of lives. It prompts people to fulfill the 100% voluntary and unpaid blood donation need worldwide.
Approximately 800 women are dying off due to malnourish pregnancy, childbirth-related complications, severe bleeding during or after delivery and etc. it is one of the ways to reduce this mortality. Moreover on this day voluntary blood donors are motivated through educational programmes and campaigns in order to strengthen the blood transfusion services.
World Blood Donor Day is celebrated annually to aware people for the need of safe blood transfusion as well as importance of blood donation throughout the world. The celebration involves organizing lots of activities and programs on international and national level. All young healthy people must donate blood to save others lives. It is
a noble cause and needs to be propagated all over the world specially places where it is urgently needed.