Units and organisations across Da Nang are calling for blood donations ahead of Tet in order to ensure a steady supply of donated blood for emergency cases and medical treatment at hospitals during the upcoming Tet Festival.

Young people participate in health checkups before donating blood. Photo: L.P

Many blood donation campaigns

On the first Sunday morning of January 2024, despite the wet and cold weather, nearly 1,000 officials, youth union members and students citywide took part in the 2024 'Red Sunday' blood donation campaign. which was jointly organised by the Da Nang Youth Union and the Tien Phong Newspaper.

Nguyen Cong Anh, Secretary of the Youth Union organisation of Phuoc Ninh Ward, Hai Chau District, along with 4 other youth union members were present early to wait to donate blood.

Cong Anh said that this was the 8^th time he had participated in voluntary blood donation and had no intention of stopping.

Besides such voluntary blood donation campaigns, he also regularly donates blood as per requested by hospitals. At the same time, he has actively got involved in encouraging more youth union members and young people in the ward to donate blood.

Meanwhile, Mr. Le Dang Phuong Nam, Deputy Secretary of the Youth Union organisation of the Da Nang-based Central Power Corporation, has voluntarily donated his blood to save lives 23 times.

For him, voluntary blood donation is not only a noble gesture but also shows the youth's responsibility to the community with the meaning "A drop of blood gives away, a life stay".

According to Deputy Secretary of the municipal Youth Union cum Chairman of the city’s Youth Union Nguyen Ba Duan, in response to the "Red Sunday" campaign 2024, the municipal Youth Union and the city’s Youth Union directed affiliated units to organise voluntary blood donation campaigns from December 2023 to late January 2024, with the aim to collect about 2,500 blood units in total.

Chief of Office of the city’s Steering Board for Voluntary Blood Donation Campaign Doan Van Hoa said that in the months leading up to Tet, voluntary blood donation activities take place continuously to ensure blood sources for emergency cases and medical treatment at hospitals before, during and after Lunar New Year 2024.

Specifically, in January, six voluntary blood donation campaigns are scheduled to be held at the Da Nang University of Architecture, the Youth Union, the Sports and Physical Training Centre, the University of Economics and the Duy Tan University, and in Hai Chau District.

Meanwhile, the two similar events will be organised in Cam Le District’s Hoa Tho Tay Ward and Thanh Khe District in February.

A total of 3,900 blood units are expected to be collected during the aforementioned programmes in January and February.

In addition to planned blood donation programmes, many associations, groups and individuals also regularly donate blood unexpectedly when receiving information from hospitals or patients' families.

Voluntary blood donation activities take place regularly to ensure blood sources for emergency cases and medical treatment before, during and after Lunar New Year 2024. IN PHOTO: Young people participating in a voluntary blood donation campaign. Photo: L.P

Ensuring sufficient blood supply

According to Mr. Doan Van Hoa, in order to ensure the efficiency of voluntary blood donation campaigns and sufficient blood supplies for hospitals, the city’s Steering Board for Voluntary Blood Donation, the municipal Youth Union, the Confederation of Labour, and the Red Cross Society have implemented many positive solutions to maintain and develop the source of blood donors. Included are honouring and reward outstanding blood donors, and typical voluntary blood donation models.

Currently, the city has 12 effective models of voluntary blood donation such as the Loving Hand, Live to Love, Ban Mai Xanh, Understand and Love, and Tu Tam clubs, and the municipal Youth Union’s Reserve Blood Donor Team.

In particular, in 2023, three more blood clubs were established in the districts of Son Tra, Ngu Hanh Son, and Lien Chieu. These aforementioned blood clubs, teams, and groups donated a total of 6,320 blood units to hospitals, accounting for 17.6% of the total number of donated blood units throughout the city.

Last year, agencies, units and localities organises 118 communication campaigns about blood donation in many forms for 40,000 people citywide.

According to Mr. Doan Van Hoa, in recent years, voluntary blood donation activities in the city have been attractive and widespread. As a result, in 2023, the whole city organised 118 voluntary blood donation campaigns, receiving more than 35,980 units of blood, reaching 133.2% of the yearly plan.

In 2024, the city's Steering Board for Voluntary Blood Donation strives to collect 29,000 blood units to serve the needs of the Da Nang Hospital with 24,600 blood units, the Cancer Hospital with 4,000, and the Maternity and Paediatrics Hospital. with 400.

​Reporting by LAM PHUONG - Translating by M.DUNG