Chandigarh, 14.06.25-World Blood Donor Day has been celebrated every year since the year 2005, throughout the world on 14th June. This is to raise awareness of the importance of blood donation and to recognize the contribution of voluntary, unpaid blood donors in saving lives and improving health. 14th June is the birthday of Karl Landsteiner (1868-1943), an Austrian biologist and physician, considered to be the “founder” of modern blood transfusion, who also discovered the ABO blood groups.
Every blood donation is a precious lifesaving gift, and repeat donation is the key to building a safe and sustainable blood supply and achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC). Access to safe and secure blood supply based on the voluntary non-remunerated donation is vital for management of accident and trauma victims, patients requiring surgeries, cancer patients, cases of bleeding during pregnancy and child birth, cases of anemia including those requiring life long and regular blood transfusions for conditions such as Sickle Cell Anemia and Thalassemia etc Voluntary non-remunerated plasma donations also play an important part in supporting patients with a wide range of long-term conditions such as Hemophilia and immune deficiencies.
The slogan for this year’s World Blood Donor Day campaign on 14th June 2024 is “Give Blood, Give Hope: Together We Save Lives”. It emphasizes the role of volunteer blood donors in ensuring the safe and sustainable blood supply of a nation. It is celebrated all over the world to thank these noble volunteer donors.
On this occasion, the Department of Transfusion Medicine conducted 2 Blood Donation Camps to create awareness regarding voluntary blood donation -
1. At the Blood Donation Centre, Advanced Trauma Centre, PGIMER, Chandigarh, in association with Thalassaemic Charitable Trust, PGIMER. This was inaugurated by Prof. R.K. Ratho, Dean (|Academic), PGIMER, Chandigarh, who motivated and thanked all the blood donors for this noble cause.
2. At the International Airport, Mohali.
Total 309 blood donors donated blood in the above camps.
All the healthy adults between 18-65 years of age are requested to come forward for this noble cause and can donate blood at any of the licensed blood banks in the tri-city.
Department of Transfusion Medicine, PGIMER, Chandigarh, expresses its sincere gratitude to all its volunteer donors who have been supporting the department by donating blood at regular intervals to meet the blood and blood component requirements of patients in the institute.