Westville based company, Netconfig, recently showed their support to the South African National Blood Service’s (SANBS) ‘Good Hood’ drive by hosting a blood drive at their work offices.
The office blood drive saw Netconfig members of the team, people and businesses from surrounding community coming together to support their drive where they were able to donate a whopping 31 pints of blood to the blood bank.
Operations Director of Netconfig, Erica Floweday, said: “We had set a target of 21 pints for the drive so we are absolutely thrilled and so grateful for the wonderful support we received for our drive enabling us to bank 31 pints. With one pint of blood able to save three lives, this means 93 lives saved and a wonderfully selfless contribution by the incredible people that came to donate to help ease the plight of the shortages that our Blood Bank faces on a continuous basis here in KZN!”
Meanwhile SANBS is appealing to South Africans to donate blood urgently due to stock levels are severely low.
SANBS reported that group O is to be below two days’ cover. The last two weeks leading to Easter weekend have had a significant impact on blood donations and collections, resulting in a shortage of blood supply across the country.
The school holidays have also had a bigger than usual impact as most blood collections are done at schools and universities.
Thandi Mosupye, SANBS Senior Manager said: “We are facing an unprecedented shortage of blood supply, and we urgently need the help of all South Africans to overcome this crisis. The need for blood is constant, and if we do not get blood-stock levels to at least 3 days’ cover, we may need to continue with the current cutbacks on all non-emergency cases until the situation stabilises and improves.”
Mosupye added that donating blood is a safe process, and it only takes about 30 minutes. Those who are healthy and meet the eligibility criteria are urged to visit their nearest donation centres and donate blood today.
SANBS has set up various blood donation drives across the country to make it easier for people to donate. For more information on where to donate blood, visit the SANBS website or call the toll-free number: 0800 11 90 31.
“We urge all South Africans to join us in this critical effort to ensure that we have an adequate blood supply needed to save lives.” Mosupye pleaded.
