Missionary Renegade: Military Health System in Washington, D.C., United States for Wednesday, 14 June 2017 "Armed Services Blood Program celebrates World Blood Donor Day"

Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Military Health System in Washington, D.C., United States for Wednesday, 14 June 2017 "Armed Services Blood Program celebrates World Blood Donor Day"

Armed Services Blood Program celebrates World Blood Donor Day

Don’t wait until disaster strikes. What can you do? Give blood. Give now. Give often.

“Don’t wait until disaster strikes. What can you do? Give blood. Give now. Give often.”

That’s this year’s theme for World Blood Donor Day. Sponsored by the World Health Organization each year, World Blood Donor Day is celebrated June 14 and acknowledges the millions of men and women who roll up their sleeves to give blood. This year’s campaign focuses on the need for blood donations in emergencies.

Celebrated on the birth date of Karl Landsteiner, the Nobel Prize winner who discovered the ABO blood group system, World Blood Donor Day made its debut in 2005. Since then, the day has served as a way to raise awareness about the need for blood and blood products and to honor those who voluntarily donate blood on a regular basis.

Of all of the World Blood Donor Day objectives, perhaps the most important one is the need to build a wider public awareness of the need for committed, year-round blood donation.

“Because blood may be needed at any time, it must be collected regularly. No one expects to need blood; however, if it is not available when the need arises, the consequences can be fatal,” said Navy Capt. Roland Fahie, director of the Armed Services Blood Program.

Blood and blood products cannot be stored indefinitely and cannot be manufactured. Red blood cells must be transfused between 35 and 42 days after collection. Platelets have an even shorter shelf life and must be transfused within five days of collection. Therefore, regular donors are vital to the success of any blood collection program.

“When you think about the idea that 40 or more units may be needed for a single trauma victim or that a single unit of blood can sustain a premature infant’s life for two weeks, it makes the decision to roll up your sleeve pretty easy. We hear all the time that there is no better feeling than saving a life, but only about five percent of eligible donors actually donate. That is why regular donors are so important in ensuring blood is available year-round.”

As one of four national blood collection agencies in the United States, the Armed Services Blood Program was established in 1962. The ASBP is the sole blood provider for the U.S. military and now operates more than 20 blood donor centers worldwide. The program’s main goal is to provide blood and blood products to ill or injured service members and their families worldwide – whether it’s on the battlefield overseas or a military treatment facility in the U.S.

“The military is a very fluid organization. We do a lot around the world,” Navy Capt. Roland Fahie said. “We have to make sure that we are able to support blood needs at locations all over the globe and respond often times very quickly. Therefore, we must continue to learn from our transfusion practices of the past, support and evaluate our needs now, and plan for the transfusion needs of our warriors and beneficiaries for the future.”

This year’s World Blood Donor Day campaign also aims to “engage authorities in the establishment of effective national blood donor programs with the capacity to respond promptly to the increase in blood demand during emergencies.”

According to Fahie, that’s something the military blood program has been doing since 2007 as part of the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, part of the Combatant Command’s Security Cooperation Programs. As part of the Department of Defense’s overall global engagement mission, the ASBP works to provide technical support to help build capacity in developing and partner countries to bridge gaps between the military and the national programs.

“Our mission and outreach are not only to help our service members, but also to make sure, especially if we are partnering with another country and helping them develop infrastructure, that they can meet international safety standards and help their people — and even our people — if we get hurt,” Fahie said. “We have assisted several countries with developing national standards for blood safety, and now we are looking at how we are going to implement those standards throughout the country.”

“Right now, we supply blood and blood products for approximately 1.3 million service members and their families across the nation and around the globe every year,” Fahie said. “That means we have a constant need for blood and for blood donors. Without donors, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do.”

Disclaimer: Re-published content may have been edited for length and clarity. Read original post.