Blood for Thalassemia: Competing to donate more

Ten institutions take part in University of Central Punjab’s campaign.

LAHORE:

Twelve branches of the University of Central Punjab (UCP) and nine other schools and colleges in the city are competing to donate the largest number of blood bags to the Fatmid Foundation.

The blood donation contest, organised by Jehad for Zero Thalassemia , a student society at UCP, started on June 1 and will continue till June 14, the World Blood Donor Day.

Besides UCP, the participating institutions are Comsats, Government College University, Forman Christian College, Lahore Grammar School’s Paragon Branch, University of Lahore, University of Management and Technology, Beaconhouse National University, Skans School of Accountancy and Shalimar Medical College.

The blood will be donated to thalassemia patients, who need blood transfusion every seven days. The donation started at most participating schools on Wednesday. LGS Paragon, however, had started the campaign on May 23 due to their A-Level exams scheduled on June 1. Fifty blood bags were donated from the school after a one-week camp.

The 2-week contest will conclude at an event at the UCP called Dropped in a Drop, where the institution with most bags will be honoured.

Ghulam Dastagir, a member of the UCP organising society, said that the event aimed at raising awareness about thalassemia over a five-year period.  “We have started with schools and colleges in Lahore. Next year we are planning to expand the campaign across the Punjab and eventually the entire country.” He said the Society wanted to set an example so that the WHO could arrange a similar event next year. He said that the campaign was going well so far and hoped to collect a record number of bags.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 2^nd, 2011.