DUBAI, (Pakistan Point News - 10th Mar, 2021) The Dubai Health Authority’s Dubai Blood Donation Centre (DBDC) was re-accredited by the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) after adhering to 100 per cent compliance.
The centre first received its AABB accreditation in 2012 making it the first centre in the UAE and one of the few centres in the middle East region to achieve this accreditation. Since then the centre has maintained its accreditation status and has been re-accredited every two years.
Dr. Hussain Al Samt, Director of Pathology and Genetics Department at the DHA, said, "We are incredibly proud of our team at the DBDC who have maintained the highest level of quality with regard to all aspects of blood collection, processing, testing, storage and distribution. This accreditation highlights the high-level of standards that are followed at the centre. International accreditations are important to benchmark ourselves and play an important role in the delivery of safe and high-quality services."
The AABB accreditation evaluates all aspects of the blood transfusion chain right from the vein of the donor to the vein of the patient.
Al Samt highlighted the fact that the blood donation centre is the main blood donation centre in Dubai that collects 50 percent of the total blood collected in the country.
In 2020, more than 66,000 donors visited the centre and 49,500 units of blood were collected. It supplies blood and blood products to all the DHA hospitals as well as 40 private hospitals in Dubai.
The DBDC organised 658 mobile blood donation campaigns in 2020.
An independent study conducted in 2020 highlighted that customer happiness and trust for the DBDC was 97 percent.
Regular blood donation takes 15 minutes, while platelet collection takes 45 minutes to one hour. Thalassemia patients require regular blood transfusions every few weeks. Platelet collections are also vital and needed by cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Since platelets are blood cells critical to stopping bleeding, these are used in life-threatening bleeding situations- post-surgery or after accidents.
The centre is located on the premises of Latifa Hospital and carries out mobile blood donation drives across the community in Dubai.
Individuals interested in donating blood can download the DHA smart mobile app and go on the DAMMI blood donation service section. All details such as eligibility criteria and an eligibility questionnaire to evaluate whether the candidate can donate blood are available on the app.
