In view of dwindling volumes of blood in hospitals across the country, the National Insurance Commission (NIC) – regulator of the insurance sector – is collaborating with various players in the insurance industry to restock the national blood bank.
The exercise, which is set to come off today, September 27, 2023, is aimed at saving the lives of pregnant women in labour, children and accident victims among others who may at one point or another be in need of blood to survive.
A statement issued by the insurance regulator, NIC, said the blood donation exercise has become imperative due to reports of blood shortages at health facilities across the country.
“The insurance industry does not work in isolation from the people they are expected to insure, either by way of their lives or by assets,” the statement read.
“This gesture by the Insurance industry follows a request via NIC by the National Blood Service (NBS) to the industry in 2021 to help re-stock the country’s blood bank which was fast running out of stock. As part of the industry’s corporate social responsibility, the entire insurance industry kick-started this annual campaign and donated 801 units of blood in 2021. This number increased exponentially in 2022 to 2,015,” it added.
Director-Greater Accra Regional Hospital, Dr. Emmanuel K. Srofenyoh, is expected to deliver the keynote speech at the 2023 blood donation campaign launch today at the NIC Head Office in Accra.
The theme for this year’s campaign is ‘Donate blood, save a life – as you do it for someone, you do it for yourself’.
The statement further noted that chief executive officers of insurance entities will be the first to donate blood to support the Oncology Unit of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in commemoration of Childhood Cancer Month (September).
