AS THE festive season approaches, the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS) is encouraging more Jamaicans to give blood through the message, 'Give the gift of blood this Christmas'.
"We are still trying to sell people the idea that this could be something they do for the good of the rest of Jamaica; their contribution to society," said Sandra Brown, communications officer for the Voluntary Blood Donor Programme during donor appreciation day, held on Tuesday at the NBTS' Slipe Pen Road headquarters.
She says getting persons to volunteer is still proving to be quite a challenge and that the event was to "show our valued donors just how much we appreciate their contribution to us over the past year."
Meanwhile Miss Brown said that, despite a successful two-day blood drive at the University of the West Indies last month, overall collection for the year was not "looking so good".
She attributed the reduced collection to heavy rains.
Commenting on the laboratory figures for the day, Miss Brown said it was "not looking so bad" but that, depending on the requests coming in from the hospitals, it could jump.
She said approximately 50 per cent of the population had type 'O' positive blood, while some 25 per cent had 'A' positive, and an estimated 20 per cent are 'B' positive. About four per cent are 'AB' positive, which is among the rarer blood types.
Collection centres
Persons interested in donating blood may call the National Blood Transfusion Service at 922-5181-5 or visit any of the following blood collection centres:
Mandeville Hospital, Manchester.
National Chest Hospital, Kingston.
University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI), Kingston.
National Blood Transfusion Service on Slipe Road, Kingston.
May Pen Hospital, Clarendon.
Port Antonio Hospital, Portland.
Savanna-la-Mar Hospital, Westmoreland.
Cornwall Regional Hospital, Montego Bay, St. James.
- Jamaica Information Service (JIS)
