Donate Blood, Save Lives

The international community on Wednesday, June 14, marked this year’s World Blood Donor Day, with the theme, ‘What Can You Do? Give Blood, Give Now, Give Often’.
Every year, June 14 is set aside by countries across the globe to raise awareness on the need for safe blood donation and transfusion; and the need for humanity to save lives through the instrumentality of blood donation.
Most importantly, the commemoration of the day offers an ample opportunity for the world to thank blood donors for their life-saving gifts without financial benefits in return, and to encourage others to donate blood freely.
This year’s event primarily focused on the need for governments, all over the world, to promote the inclusion of blood transfusion services in their healthcare programmes and policies. There is no gainsaying the fact that blood is an essential component of human existence, as no human being can survive without it.
Blood is an important resource, both for patients’ treatment and urgent interventions. Besides, it supports complex medical and surgical treatments and procedures, just as it is important in maternal and peri-natal care of patients. No doubt, blood is essential for treating the wounded, especially during emergencies, natural disasters, accidents, etc. It has life-saving roles which can never be quantified in monetary terms.
It has been discovered that armed conflicts and disasters cause over one million deaths yearly, while 250 million people are affected by emergencies, earthquakes, flood, storms and other natural disasters every year. It is also on record that man-made disasters like accidents and armed conflicts generate huge healthcare demands, and therefore, the need for blood transfusion has become more compelling.
Reports indicate that 112.5 million blood is collected annually, with half of this figure coming from high income communities of the world. According to statistics, earthquakes, storms, civil strifes, road accidents and air mishaps  create emergencies which, in most cases, call for blood transfusion.
It is, however, regrettable that when it comes to saving lives, particularly through blood donation, several persons in Nigeria, nay the world, shy away. This is why the theme of this year’s commemoration is more timely, apt and appropriate, because there is the urgent need for us to give blood now, and do so often and often.
The Tide observes that over the years, ignorance, cultural and religious sentiments have discouraged people from donating blood to save lives. Paradoxically, these factors, to a great extent, have not helped humanity and society to tackle cases of deaths arising from disasters and emergencies, as many persons have been sent to their early graves due to shortage of blood.
There is, therefore, a compelling need for governments at all levels, as well as humanitarian organisations, to step up awareness campaign on blood donation so as to encourage and persuade individuals to step out and donate blood. By so doing, we believe they will be saving thousands of lives of victims of emergencies.
The Tide, therefore, encourages people to donate blood to save lives, as a pint of blood donated today can go a long way to save a life. We also appeal that people should not attach spirituality and other primordial sentiments, for that matter, to blood donation. Blood donation, according to experts, can be safe and healthy.
The government and stakeholders should, therefore, take up the gauntlet and sensitise the people on the need to donate blood. This is  because disasters, conflicts and emergencies, both natural and man-made, have become daily occurrences across the globe.
While we appeal to Nigerians to donate blood, we also condemn, in strong terms, the commercialisation of blood freely donated by individuals. The practice whereby medical personnel, in turn, sell such products at exorbitant prices amounts to sabotage and sheer wickedness.
Indeed, no sacrifice is too much to save a life today.  Therefore, donate blood and save lives now.