A number of voluntary blood donation centers were opened in Chisinau on the occasion of the World Blood Donor Day that is marked on June 14. The event is organized by the National Blood Transfusion Center in partnership with the Ministry of Health and aims to raise people’s awareness of the need to donate blood voluntarily and save lives.

Contacted by IPN, the National Blood Transfusion Center’s head Svetlana Cebotari said that this year the event will be held under the theme “Give the gift of life: donate blood”. The Donors Day is staged the tenth year in a row. Within the event, there will be distributed brochures, posters and leaflets that promote voluntary and regular blood donation.

“In the period between 09.00 and 15.00, all those who want can donate blood at the four centers set up in Chisinau: in the square of the Public Garden “Stephen the Great”; at the Botanica Local Medical Association located at 5A Dacia Blvd; at the Ciocana district head’s office at 4/3 Mircea cel Batran St, and at the Rascani district head’s office at 3 Kiev St. All the donors will receive parcels of candies and juices,” said Svetlana Cebotari.

In the same connection, she specified that the number of blood donors is constantly on the rise and totals about 80,000 a year. The medical institutions have never remained without blood reserves, but the supplies must be renewed permanently because the period of validity of the stored blood is 35 days.

According to the Ministry of Health, the blood collected yearly is used for about 150,000 sick persons. Of the 80,000 blood donations, only 32,000 are ensured by voluntary donors. The Ministry aims to increase the number of voluntary donations by at least 5% annually. Compared with 2005, when voluntary donations represented 14%, mainly from relatives, in 2012 this figure rose to 40%.