PDC going ahead with annual blood donation campaign despite pandemic

Mohd Bazid (right) promoting the blood donation programme at the press conference while mascot Red Spear calls on the public to be blood donor heroes.

THE pandemic will not stop Penang Development Corporation (PDC) from organising its annual blood donation campaign to ensure that the stock in Penang is sufficient.

PDC chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Bazid Abdul Kahar said donating blood is a noble practice that can save lives.

“One pint of blood can help up to three patients so we will go on with our campaign this year despite the pandemic, ” he said at a press conference at PDC headquarters in Bayan Lepas.

“The campaign will be held with our permanent collaboration partner, the state civil service welfare and recreational council (Maksak).

“We also have the co-operation of Penang Hospital, Seberang Jaya Hospital, PDC Setia Urus Sdn Bhd and Mydin Bukit Mertajam.”

Mohd Bazid added that over the past 14 years, they had collected 5,159 pints of blood for Penang Hospital and Seberang Jaya Hospital.

“Our target is to get more than 500 pints of blood this year.

“We will be having an in-house blood donation campaign for the PDC staff on March 3 from 9am to 4pm.

“As for the public, we will hold a blood donation campaign on the third floor of Komtar on Sept 1 and Sept 2 from 9am to 4pm.

“We will also be holding a blood donation campaign at Mydin Bukit Mertajam on the mainland on Nov 27 from 9am to 4pm.

“The public do not have to worry about their safety as the programme will be held according to the standard operating procedures.

“These will include physical distancing, wearing of face masks, taking of body temperature and use of hand sanitiser.

“We hope more donors will come forward to support our campaign.

“We will be giving out interesting gifts and appreciation certificates to those who manage to donate blood, ” he said.

Mohd Bazid also introduced the PDC blood donation campaign 2021 mascot who is a superhero named Red Spear.

Meanwhile, Penang Hospital blood bank medical officer Dr Yap Pau Yee said they were targeting regular donors who could donate blood every three months.

“Although we have enough blood supply now, we need to ensure that our blood stock can be maintained at a safe level.

“On average, we use between 80 and 100 pints of blood every day.

“We are also trying our best to have more mobile blood donation drives throughout Penang, ” she said.

When asked if those who had taken their Covid-19 vaccination shots could donate blood, Dr Yap said the guidelines would be released by the National Blood Bank soon.

Those interested can also check the ‘Derma Darah Penang’ Facebook and Instagram pages for updates.

Maksak representative Imran Rusli said there were more than 20,000 Maksak members in Penang.

“We are committed to helping PDC when needed, ” he said.

Also present at the press conference was PDC senior deputy general manager Jamil Ibrahim.