Donors step in to ease blood shortage

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Sun, 10/12/2008 9:47 AM | Headlines

A woman is prepared by doctors to donate blood to the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) at a blood giving event held by a developer company at an apartment construction site in Kalibata, South Jakarta, on Saturday.

The event collected more than 100 blood bags, with each donator providing one bag.

"The blood donation event should not last for more than three hours because of the fragility of fresh blood," said Devi Aziz, a promotion officer of developer PT Pradani Sukses Abadi, which hosted the event.

Some 120 nearby residents attended the event to donate blood. However, 20 people were not allowed to donate due to reasons including being underweight.

On Friday, the Jakarta administration held a blood giving event to help boost the PMI's blood stock, which had been running low.

Jakarta Deputy Governor Prijanto asked all civil servants in the office to donate blood. The PMI collected more than 140 bags during the event.

Hospitals in Jakarta ran out of blood after the Idul Fitri Holiday. On an average day, PMI supplies more than 800 bags of blood to Jakarta's hospitals.

PMI reported that it had prepared for the shortage by organizing a number of events during the fasting month, which normally sees decreased blood donations, thus requiring relatives of patients to donate.

To prevent a blood crisis, the PMI operates 14 cars that serve as mobile blood giving stations throughout the city.

Head of the Jakarta Health Agency Titi Suryanti said the blood shortage in Jakarta had been caused by the high number of accidents and dengue fever cases during the Idul Fitri holiday period, Antara news agency reported. naf

Comments (0) | Post comment

A | A | A |