Makati City Mayor Abby Binay encouraged Makatizens on Tuesday to donate blood to ensure that there will be sufficient supply for residents who may need transfusion or for medical procedures.
Binay said the city government will hold a mass blood donation caravan at the Makati City Hall Building 2 on October 8, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The mayor said that residents who have questions or concerns may call 8899-8948 and look for Ryan Agno or Jeannette Saurin.
Last September 8, Dr.Christie Monina Nalupta, Director of the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) National Blood Services, said that blood donations fell by around 29 percent to 365,000 units of blood in 2020 from more than 516,000 units of blood in 2019 due to on-and-off lockdowns and restricted mobility caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
She said that with blood donations down to once a week, PRC’s contribution fell to just 30–40 percent of the national blood requirement in 2020 from 50 percent in 2019 when blood drives were held two to three times a day yielding over 15,000 blood units daily.
Nalupta also attributed the decrease to the loss of young donors, aged 16 to 25, as a major source of blood collection.
“Suddenly because of online education and no face-to-face engagement in schools, there was a 12 percent drop in blood collection of youth in 2020 from 2019,” she said.