Dr. Shirley Owusu-Ofori, Head of the Transfusion Medicine Unit at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, has called on Ghanaians to dismiss misinformation surrounding blood donation.
At the World Child Cancer Project closure meeting in Accra, Dr. Shirley stated that misconceptions about blood donation significantly hinder efforts to boost voluntary donation rates.
She specifically debunked claims such as male donors experiencing impotence, the transfer of personality traits through blood transfusion, and the misuse of donated blood for occult practices, labeling these as baseless and lacking scientific evidence.
Dr. Shirley assured that the blood service maintains accountability and transparency through a tracing system that tracks each unit of blood from donation to recipient.
She disclosed that the National Blood Service aims to collect 308,000 units annually but fell short of its target of 190,000 units in 2024, collecting 187,000 units instead.
To enhance blood availability and accessibility, Dr. Shirley revealed plans to establish regional blood centers across all 16 regions.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
