Public support crucial to meet increasing demand for blood supply
MIRI: With increasing demand for blood, support from members of the public is crucial to ensure sufficient stable blood supply at Miri Blood Bank.
Miri Hospital director Dr Jack Wong revealed that last year the demand for blood increased more than 10 per cent from 2018 to 8,258 pints.
“Fortunately, blood collection in 2019 had also increased to 8,734 pints, the second highest collection among all hospitals in Sarawak,” he said in his textofspeech read by his deputy Dr Francis Heng at the Northern Sarawak Journalists Association ( NSJA) blood donation drive yesterday.
Miri Blood Bank record shows 67.78 per cent were male donors and out of the donors aged between 17and 65, the 30 to 34 age group recorded the highest number of donors.
Of the total, 46.5 per cent were Chinese, Natives ( 44.82 per cent) and Malays ( 6 per cent).
“Though the numbers may be of interest to the public, the utmost important thing is not race, gender or age but rather a donor is a person who believes in generously giving and saving lives,” he said.
It must be emphasised that Miri Blood Bank not only supply to Miri Hospital but also private hospitals in Miri as well as district hospitals in Marudi, Limbang and Lawas.
“Some of the blood, especially rare blood types go as far as Sabah,” he added.
Dr Wong lauded NSJA for organising the mobile blood donation campaign and contributing to the blood bank.
NSJA’s second blood campaign had recorded 90 successful donors out of 122 registered participants with 17 new donors.
Also present at the opening ceremony were Boulevard’s Functions and Marketing assistant manager Konny Koh; Shun Shen Lee ( SSL) branch manager Jimmy Yii; Miri Blood Bank public relation officer Kenneth Numan, Zone 6 Fire and Rescue Department chief Supt Law Poh Kiong; and NSJA president Andy Jong.