World Blood Donor Day 2018 is on June 14th. It is an annual event, usually on the same date each year, to thank voluntary blood donors and acknowledge them and encourage blood donation and new donors, especially by representing how blood donations have saved and changed lives. The Day has the slogan ‘Share Life, Give Blood’, referring to the caring and cohesion that giving blood and caring for others involves.
One of the aims of the day is to encourage younger people, who might be a bit nervous or unsure about giving blood, to feel encouraged to sign up and start donating, so that the donor population doesn’t decline but stays strong. It is also to highlight the need for donations to be regular in order to keep stocks and quality of blood donations high.
Blood donation saves millions of lives annually and helps with the recovery and health of patients who have illnesses or injuries, complex operations or childbirth problems. Blood stocks are also essential in natural and man-made disasters. Some blood types are rare, so promoting the need for rare donor types is also part of this event. World Blood Donor Day is vital in highlighting the need for blood donors and regular donations.
Many countries still have a shortage of donors, and thus World Blood Donor Day is vital to these countries to raise awareness of blood donation and thus increase supply in order to save as many lives as possible.