‘Blood group O still in short supply’

THE National Blood Service of Zimbabwe is still facing shortages of Blood Group O and is calling on members of the public to continue donating blood to ensure that the country has enough stocks.

In an interview, NBSZ Matabeleland regional public relations officer Mr Sifundo Ngwenya said there has been an “average response” from blood donors since the organisation has been calling for more donations especially for Blood Group O.

“Ever since we appealed to the public the response has been on average, it hasn’t been on the top notch as we anticipated and we are still appealing for more blood donations,” he said.

Mr Ngwenya said demand for blood goes up especially during holidays when people are involved in accidents.

“Right now we have seen the challenges that rose from other areas in the country that quite a huge number of people get injured and in such circumstances if we don’t have enough blood stocks in the bank we will still face the same challenges,” he said.

In July Zimbabwe started giving blood for free, hence Mr Ngwenya said, naturally demand has gone up hence the need for more donations.

“Blood was made free to all citizens in the country, we are also anticipating that the demand for blood would increase so there is a need for us to make sure that we implore people to donate blood.

“Let us encourage our family members who are healthy and strong so that at least we have blood available to everyone,” Mr Ngwenya said.