Last Saturday, the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion (NIHBT) opened a blood donation center in Hanoi, which marks a first for the capital.
The center, which can be found at Hoan Kiem Medical Center, 26 Luong Ngoc Quyen Street, is part of a renewed attempt to address the issue of blood shortages in the capital.
Hospitals have long been accepting blood donations, but most have come through mobile sites. In 2018, the city’s hospitals received 223,000 units of blood via donations. With Hanoi home to many central hospitals, however, this figure is far from the amount required to meet demand.
According to Nhan Dan, Dr. Bach Quoc Khanh, director of the NIHBT, claimed that although blood donations had increased in recent years, the fact that many come from mobile sites has resulted in an irregular supply, which in turn leads to blood shortages.
He added that more permanent blood donation centers are scheduled to open across the city and that favorable conditions will be created in order to encourage people to donate.
Donating blood is certainly becoming more popular in Vietnam. Earlier this month, a Saigon man stated that he wanted to donate blood 100 times, or as much as his health allows. Meanwhile, NGOs and other organizations have organized blood donation events to encourage people to donate.
[Top image via Thomson Medical]
