World Blood Donor Day 2022: Donating blood is an act of solidarity

World Blood Donor Day takes place on 14 June each year. The day was created to:

• raise global awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products for transfusion;
• highlight the critical contribution voluntary, unpaid blood donors make to national health systems;
• support national blood transfusion services, blood donor organizations and other nongovernmental organizations in strengthening and expanding their voluntary blood donor programmes by reinforcing national and local campaigns.

The day also provides an opportunity to call to action governments and national health authorities to provide adequate resources to increase the collection of blood from voluntary, unpaid blood donors and to manage access to blood and the transfusion of those who require it.

Blood and blood products are essential resources for effective management of women suffering from bleeding associated with pregnancy and childbirth; children suffering from severe anaemia due to malaria and malnutrition; patients with blood and bone marrow disorders, inherited disorders of haemoglobin and immune deficiency conditions; victims of trauma, emergencies, disasters and accidents; as well as patients undergoing advanced medical and surgical procedures. \

The need for blood is universal, but access to blood for all those who need it is not. Blood shortages are particularly acute in low- and middle-income countries.

To ensure that everyone who needs transfusion has access to safe blood, all countries need voluntary, unpaid blood donors who give blood regularly. An effective blood donor programme, characterized by wide and active participation of the population, is crucial in meeting the need of blood transfusion during peace time as well as during emergencies or disasters, when there is a surge in demand for blood or when the normal operation of blood services is affected. While an enabling social and cultural atmosphere with strong solidarity facilitates development of an effective blood donor programme, it is also widely acknowledged that the act of blood donation contributes to generating social ties and building a united community.

Source: United Nations