Central Visayas health execs raising blood donation target
CEBU CITY –– Regional health officials have raised its target of blood donors for Central Visayas because of the influx of patients from other regions.
While they believed there was enough blood supply in the region, people from other areas come here and use up most of the supplies.
Dr. Jera Armendarez, coordinator of the National Voluntary Blood Donation Program, said the regional health office was able to achieve the one-percent target number of donors out of the population.
“Even if we meet the target, the demand is too high because people from other regions come here,” Armendarez explained.
Armendarez at the sidelights of the World Blood Donor Day in the City, also said people were misinformed as to where to go in securing blood for their patients.
This creates a scenario where we see on social media that there is a scarcity of blood, with people appealing for blood donations online, she added.
Since most people from other regions go to Cebu and increase the demand for blood, Armendarez said they were raising the blood donation campaign target to up to 2 percent of the entire Central Visayas population.
This translates to around 140,000 bags of blood.
DOH-7 Assistant Regional Director Elenietta Gamolo also asked individual local government units (LGUs) to also secure one percent of their population to donate blood.
While the entire region has achieved the DOH-mandated “one percent,” individual LGUs fall below the target, she said.
At least 1,000 people committed to donating blood today at the Camp Lapu-Lapu in Cebu City.
Employees of various government agencies, firefighters, soldiers, and Coast Guard personnel were among those who donated blood today. (Editor: Leti Boniol)
