Blood donation event held for International Doctors' Day
With International Doctors' Day on Thursday, expatriate doctors and patients donated blood in honor of the occasion.
Shanghai Jiahui International Hospital teamed up with the Shanghai Blood Administration Office to initiate the "Lend an Arm" campaign to promote blood donation, and designated the day "Jiahui Blood Donation Day" to organize a donation event each year.
A total of 162 people including Jiahui staff, patients and others who saw the poster donated 38,800 milliliters of blood. About 20 percent of the donors are expatriates.
The local blood authority hailed the campaign and welcomed more people, including expatriates, to donate blood.
"Blood donation is getting more popular in the city. The rate of blood donor per 1,000 people in Shanghai is 15, while the national level is 12. The international standard is 20, so we will keep stepping up the promotion of blood donations," said Zou Zhengrong, director of the Shanghai Blood Administration Office.
"Shanghai has a big demand for blood. Xuhui District, where Jiahui is located, uses about one sixth of the total blood in the city, because there are many leading hospitals here. We are grateful that hospitals like Jiahui initiated the campaign to promote blood donation."
Jiahui said it is the fifth straight year that it organized a blood donation event.
"Our hospital's blood use is rising by 80 percent annually. We chose International Doctors' Day as our blood donation day to express the medics' gratitude for the blood supply, which ensures our medical services and patient safety. The campaign is also a great way to give back to society," said Ge Feng, CEO of Jiahui Health.
Dr Yuko Matsumoto, a Japanese gynecologist at Jiahui, donates blood.
Dr Yuko Matsumoto, a Japanese gynecologist at Jiahui, said her department is a place which can use large amounts of blood. "I've encountered a foreign pregnant woman with an emergency at Jiahui, and received a large quantity of blood for treatment. She and her baby were both saved," she said. "I want to donate blood to show my gratitude."
"In addition, local doctors have done a lot during the pandemic. As a foreign doctor, I can't do as much as they do. So I came to donate blood today," she said.
Expatriate patients at Jiahui also actively participated in the donation, and want the government to introduce more methods for foreigners to donate conveniently.
Debbie Foster from South Africa is living with her husband and two children in Shanghai.
"It's a routine for me to donate blood in my hometown. I also give donations in Shanghai. It's not very easy for a foreigner to give donations, as we may have language problems and are not familiar with the process here. I give regular donations because there is a blood donation center near my children's school," she said. "I decided to participate in Jiahui's campaign immediately after seeing its poster on WeChat."
Debbie Foster from South Africa is a regular donor.
