While the flow of people is rushing to prepare for the Lunar New Year holiday, at hospitals, thousands of patients are still waiting for units of blood to maintain their lives. Especially near Tet and after Tet, the demand for blood to serve surgeries, emergency care due to traffic accidents and treatment of hematological diseases tends to increase.
To ensure blood reserves for this peak period, the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion has launched a large-scale blood donation campaign, calling on the community to join hands to bring a complete Tet to patients.
Recorded at the blood reception area of the Institute these days, there are many people and young people coming to register for blood donation. Nguyen Thi Tham (from Ninh Binh) is currently a student in Hanoi, sharing that she intended to return to her hometown early to prepare for Tet with her family, but after knowing the information calling for blood donation in the "Red Tet for Children" program, she decided to stay for another day. Although at first she was a little worried because it was the first time participating in blood donation after many times her health did not allow it, Tham felt proud because she knew that her blood could help a patient have the opportunity to maintain his health to welcome the new year.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Hang (Hanoi) chose to donate platelets. Hang said that she has participated in blood donation many times and is the first time donating platelets. According to Hang, donating platelets takes longer, about an hour or more, and requires stricter health indicators than donating blood. However, knowing that platelets have a very short shelf life, only a few days, Hang arranged personal work to come to the hospital right at this time near Tet with the desire to contribute a small part to those who urgently need blood.
According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Ngoc Que - Director of the National Blood Center, National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, the pressure of blood reserves during Tet is a difficult problem that the health sector has to face every year. According to him, blood is a special "medicine", with a shelf life and cannot be artificially produced. While blood can be stored for a long time, platelets can only be stored for about 5 days. This means that if there are no regular blood donors even during Tet, hospitals will face the risk of serious shortages.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Ngoc Que emphasized that Tet is a time when traffic accidents often have complicated developments, leading to a sudden increase in blood demand for emergency surgery.
In addition, if patients are blood deficient, they will not only not be able to return home for Tet but also face dangerous life-threatening complications.
Also according to Dr. Que, currently, each month the Center needs to reserve about 43,000 - 45,000 units of blood to ensure supply to more than 180 hospitals throughout the North. The doctor expressed his desire that people, especially those with blood groups O, A, rare blood groups or young people with good health, participate in blood donation. Ensuring stable blood reserves helps doctors and nurses be more proactive in emergency surgeries, helping to reduce worries for patients' relatives and ensure fairness in accessing healthcare for all patients, whether on weekdays or Tet.
The "Red Tet for Children" program and year-end blood donation activities are being strongly implemented with the goal of not leaving any patients behind due to blood shortage. The units of blood received at this time are the most timely relief, turning the spirit of mutual affection into specific actions.
