The US Embassy partnered with the Ministry of Health to host a blood drive that saw a total of 34 pints of blood donated by Embassy staff and staff from other diplomatic missions and international organisations.
The blood was donated during the exercise held at the Embassy on Thursday June 6, a press statement said.
According to the Embassy, the US Centers for Disease Control has provided technical support for blood safety activities to enhance blood collection procedures and policies in Guyana. As one of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (Pepfar) implementing agencies, the CDC has been involved in the rapid strengthening and improvement of blood transfusion services since 2004.
The CDC helps to create strategies to recruit and retain low-risk voluntary blood donors. It also offers support for 100 per cent testing of all donated blood units for HIV and other transfusion-transmissible infections. Physicians and other clinicians in transfusion practices are trained and given guidelines to reduce inappropriate use of blood as a clinical therapy, which has been linked to shortages.
The CDC also trains personnel to build capacity in all aspects of blood collection, storage, testing, and utilization. This partnership has contributed to a steady increase in the percentage of voluntary blood donors in Guyana, the release said.
