U.S. Embassy staff, in conjunction with the Rwandan National Center for Blood Transfusion, collected 102 units of blood for use in Rwandan hospitals and clinics this week as part of their World Blood Donor Day celebration.
U.S. Embassy Health Unit officials worked with clinicians from NCBT to collect the blood in the embassy’s multipurpose room June 19th. More than 100 American and Rwandan volunteers donated their blood for the cause.
“Giving blood is an easy step everyone can take to help save a life,” said Deputy Chief of Mission Jessica Lapenn. “The U.S. Embassy is proud to work with the Rwandan National Center for Blood Transfusion to make sure Rwandan hospitals and clinics have the blood supplies they need.”
The embassy’s blood donation drive helped celebrate World Blood Donor Day, which falls on June 14 of every year. The goal of World Blood Donor Day is for all countries to obtain 100% of their supplies of blood and blood products from voluntary unpaid blood donors by 2020.
According to the World Health Organization, the need for blood and blood products is increasing every year, and many patients requiring life-saving transfusion do not have timely access to safe blood and blood products.
Regular voluntary unpaid blood donors are the safest source of blood as there are fewer bloodborne infections among these donors than among people who give blood in exchange for money or who donate for family members in emergencies.
Do you want to donate in Rwanda? Call the NCBT at 1011 (toll free in Rwanda) to find out how you can help save a life.
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