Councilor urges kabalens to help blood banking program

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — Councilor Jimmy Lazatin urged Kapampangans and Fernandinos to help in the blood banking programs for patients needing blood supply through the Philippine National Red Cross.

“The recent calamity that hit Central Luzon has also set in renewed demand for blood supply among indigent patients in medical emergencies. The only way the Red Cross can sustain its blood supply program is through the participation of willing donors in the blood program,” Lazatin said.

Lazatin, a ranking official of the Philippine Red Cross Chapter in Pampanga, said with the onset of typhoon season, the PRC and all its 100 chapters nationwide have further intensified its recruitment and training of Red Cross 143 volunteers – the flagship volunteer program that recruits and trains 143 volunteers in every barangay, school and work place.

The Red Cross, in its website, said it has one team leader and 43 members serving as humanitarian arms of PRC on the ground, especially in times of disasters. The Red Cross’s 143 volunteers also serve as ‘walking blood' donors in their respective communities.

To date, PRC has a total of 152,362 individual blood donors, including the 2,240 members of Blood Galloners' Club, more than 20,000 members of Pledge 25 program and 4,954 donors with RH negative blood type.

Lazatin said that to ensure that everyone gets blood covering the processing cost for safe and quality blood, PRC is exerting all efforts to promote and get more supporters of ‘Blood Samaritan' project.

Blood Samaritan is a project where members sponsor indigent patients in need of blood but cannot afford the processing fee.