Red Cross appeals for more blood donors

The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) is appealing to the public to continue donating blood to save more lives.

Recently, the Department of Health (DOH) announced that the country has reached its goal of obtaining one million blood units - 450 milimeters each.

PRC Chairman Sen. Richard Gordon, however, said even if the quota of blood units was met, the public needs to continue donating.

He said more donors mean more and bigger chances of saving more lives.

“We live up to our mission of making sure that people of this country get safe, adequate, accessible, and quality blood supply. This is why our National Blood Center is ISOcertified,” he said.

“It is my hope that we can strengthen the programs even more. We should never rest on our laurels. The achievement will not stop Red Cross from hitting higher targets," he added.

Gordon also urged blood service facilities to work together to streamline the process of getting blood and to provide people more options.

“Somebody out there is desperately looking for blood. We owe it to her/him to make sure that he or she gets access to blood as soon as possible and without any hassle because we are on track to save lives,” he said.

Meantime, Gordon appealed to the Heath department to impose penalties to hospitals that practice retesting of blood units that have already been tested by PRC.