KTU students, staff donate blood to St Joseph Hospital
Students and staff of the Koforidua Technical University (KTU) in the New Juaben South Municipality in the Eastern Region last Friday donated 76 pints of blood to the blood bank of the St Joseph Orthopaedic Hospital.
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The hospital had run short of blood for some time making it almost impossible for the hospital to supply blood to patients.
The shortage of the blood necessitated the students and staff of the KTU to come to their rescue by donating blood.
Collaboration
At the blood donation exercise organised by the authorities of KTU in collaboration with the hospital, a Senior Medical Laboratory Scientist of the hospital, Selina Quarshie, said since the hospital was located at Koforidua, it was the responsibility of the residents to voluntarily donate blood.
That, she said, would make it possible for their relatives admitted at the hospital to benefit.
Ms Quarshie said by donating blood, one would be able to know his or her blood group and HIV status to enable such a person to do what was expected to improve their health.
Processing fees
She indicated that blood was not sold to patients in the market as well as in the hospital but rather the payment of small amount of processing fees before the blood would be given to patients and asked the public to disabuse their minds that blood was always sold at the hospital.
Ms Quarshie said currently the hospital’s blood bank had only 10 pints of blood which she described as woefully inadequate in case of emergency situations.
She said the hospital was in dire need of blood to take good care of patients who needed it most for their survival.
University CSR
The Vice-Chancellor of KTU, Professor David Kofi Essumang, who described the blood donation exercise as a yearly one, said donating blood was part of the university's corporate social responsibility (CSR) to support the hospital.
He said: "There is no substitute for blood and sick people in hospitals need our support to donate blood to save their lives.”
"It is, therefore, necessary for us to sustain the availability of blood to avert any eventuality”.
He thanked the students as well as the staff of KTU for taking part in the blood donation exercise to support the St Joseph Orthopaedic Hospital to save lives of patients.
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