U.S. Embassy Holds Mission Blood Drive

June 22, 2012

GEORGETOWN – In response to calls from the National Blood Bank for donations to meet a critical shortage of blood, the U.S. Embassy partnered with the Ministry of Health to conduct a Blood Drive on Thursday, June 21, 2012. The National Blood Bank relies on donations of blood from public-spirited persons to assist in situations where blood transfusion may be the only option to save a life. United States Government staff, as well as staff from other diplomatic missions and international organizations donated blood. The Embassy’s initiative resulted in the collection of thirty-one pints of blood.

The U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC) has provided considerable technical support for blood safety activities to help improve blood collection procedures and policies in Guyana. As one of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief’s (PEPFAR) implementing agencies, CDC has been involved in the rapid strengthening and improvement of blood transfusion services since 2004. CDC helps create strategies to recruit and retain low-risk voluntary blood donors and to facilitate access to HIV/AIDS treatment and care programs for those who are HIV-positive and seek to donate blood. It also offers support for 100 percent testing of all donated blood units for HIV and other transfusion-transmissible infections. Physicians and other clinicians in transfusion practices are provided education and utilization guidelines to reduce inappropriate use of blood as a clinical therapy, which has been linked to shortages. CDC also trains personnel to build capacity in all aspects of blood collection, storage, testing, and utilization. These efforts have contributed to a steady increase in the percentage of voluntary blood donors in Guyana from 18 percent in 2004, to 89 percent already in 2012; an increase of 19 percent since last year.