Institutions urged to emulate blood donation drive to stock up national blood bank

Commissioner of Insurance at the National Insurance Commission, Dr. Justice Ofori has called on institutions to emulate the insurance industry’s efforts to undertake blood donation with the view of stocking up the country’s blood banks.

According to him, the insurance industry is looking forward to donating more blood to the National Blood Service next year – 2023 to beat its own record that it set in 2022 with an unprecedented record of 2,015 units of blood per figures provided by the NBS.

Speaking at an event to mark the closing ceremony of the 2022 Blood Donation Campaign, Dr. Ofori noted, “We believe that next year, we will break the record we have set this year by ourselves, and we urge other institutions to emulate what we have done, so we can build strong national blood banks across the country”

The NIC boss further said that the 2,015 units of blood donated to the NBS is a significant improvement on the 802 units donated by the Insurance Industry when the month of August was declared as Blood Donation Month for the insurance industry in Ghana.

The campaign was themed: “Donate blood; save a life; as you do it for someone, you do it for yourself”

Speaking at the closing ceremony, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Blood Service, Dr. Shirley Owusu-Ofori, in a speech read on her behalf by the Deputy CEO of the NBS, Dr. Christabel Laryea, expressed gratitude to the Insurance Industry for such thoughtful humane gesture of voluntarily saving lives.

“The National Blood Service is indebted to the NIC and the entire insurance industry, we commend the NIC for mobilizing players in the insurance industry and some members of the public to donate to the Blood Service throughout all Regions of Ghana”

Dr. Justice Ofori later together with Dr. Opoku Ware led the Heads of the various insurance industry bodies to also feat some patients and donated some medical items to the Department of Child Health of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.

These were presented to the Chief Executive Officer of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah in the precincts of the Children’s Block.

Chief Executive Officer of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah in his remarks expressed his immense appreciation to the insurance industry for thinking about society in a special way such as blood donation, a product that cannot be manufactured.

Dr. Ampomah also implored the industry to sustain this gesture and called on other corporate sectors to take a cue from the NIC adding that KBTH is currently looking at refurbishing its in-house blood bank and convince more people to donate blood to the hospital‘s blood bank.

Meanwhile, the ceremony was graced by influential officers who work in the medical and media space.

These included Prof. Agyeman Badu Akosa, a renowned Pathologist, Prof. Lorna Renner, Head of the Paediatric Oncology (Cancers) Unit, Mr. Gustav Siale, a former Managing Director of Ghana Re and Bishop Asante Marfoh-Ahenkora.

Others were Dr. Christabel Laryea of the NBS, Mrs Kokui Selormey-Hanson (a voluntary blood donation advocate), Mr. Louis Kwame Sakyiamah aka Lexis Bill, Mr. Samuel Forson, Mr. Joseph Langabelle, Mr Rubbin Adarkwa and Mr. Ishew Stephen Tetteh Charway all voluntary blood donation advocates.

Some medical staff of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and the National Blood Service were also present.

The industry leaders were Mr Shaibu Ali (IBAG President), Mr. Richard Eshun (GNB ECOWAS Brown Card General Secretary), Dr. Kingsley Kwabahson (GIA CEO) and Mr Tawia Ben-Ahmed (CIIG President).