Accra, Oct. 28, GNA – Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Ms Lydia Donkor, in charge of Legal and Prosecution, Ghana Police Service, said Ghanaians, especially personnel in uniform, must have the desire to donate blood on regular basis to stay healthy in performing their daily tasks.
She said donating blood on voluntary and regular basis should be the desire of every citizen because many people depended on “this essential commodity” to manage their health conditions to keep them alive.
ACP Donkor said this after she had donated blood at the National Blood Service to mark her birthday.
She said the decision to donate blood on her birthday was to give back to society and to serve as motivation to others to do something amazing for humanity at all times.
ACP Donkor, also the Chairperson of the Police Ladies Football Club, said she was committed to making blood donation on her birthday a sustained exercise and urged all whose birthdays fell on October 26 to join her, each year, for the project, which would also encourage others to donate.
She said her motivation stemmed from an experience she had when her father was on admission and needed blood during emergency.
“After going through the successful process of accessing several units of blood for my father during that emergency period, I came to appreciate the work of voluntary blood donors and that inspired me to be a donor. I am happy that my blood can also save someone,” she added.
Maame Kwaaba Stephens, the Brand Ambassador for the National Blood Service, commended ACP Donkor for the bold step, adding that it was necessary to help stock the Blood Bank during the COVID-19 period, as many patients may need blood, which may not be readily available.
“Every healthy individual, who is 17 to 60 years, must donate blood at least twice in a year in order to make the blood banks efficient,” she said.
Ms Stephens, thus, called on Ghanaians to disregard the negative myths surrounding blood donation and endeavour to know more about the health benefits it provided donors aside its importance in saving lives.
GNA