When 30 years ago Joseph Farrugia laid eyes on his premature daughter who had just received a blood transfusion, he vowed to become a regular blood donor.
Since then, he has donated some 100 bags of the “life-saver” and his act of kindness has come full circle because his blood type – O Negative – is often used for premature infants who need blood transfusions.
Speaking to the Times of Malta on the occasion of Father’s Day, Farrugia said his daughter was born at 32 weeks and placed in an incubator.
Soon after, he received a call informing him his daughter urgently needed a “total blood transfusion” to be kept alive.
The newborn – now his middle child – recovered fully thanks to blood donors and the care afforded to her by the medical staff, he said.
To this day, Farrugia feels a sense of satisfaction when he donates blood which for him is “a lifesaver that cannot be bought with money”.
He was also one of the donors who heeded the call by the National Blood Transfusion Service to donate blood during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although the demand for blood decreased as the health authorities cancelled non-urgent surgeries and transfusions to curb the pandemic, so did the number of donations.
While the hospital usually needs about 50 units of blood a day, during the pandemic there was a need for around 30 daily units, NBTS director Alex Aquilina explained.
Once operations resumed as COVID-19 measures started being lifted, the demand sprung to 70 daily units because of a backlog of interventions. Demand is nowadays back to 50 bags of blood a day.
The blood bank is “just coping” with supply: just last week, one patient needed 70 units of blood on his own.
“Ideally, we have a five-day supply of each blood type to ensure we can keep up with the demand.
“However, our reserves are currently averaging three days, and, when it comes to O Positive blood, we have even lower stocks.”
Our reserves are currently averaging three days, and, when it comes to O Positive blood, we have even lower stocks
Aquilina assured that it is “very safe to donate blood – even safer than going to the beach, supermarket or the hairdresser”.
Asked about precautionary measures at the blood bank, practice nurse who is in charge of donor liaison Tony Micallef said that apart from basic questions about their health, donors also have their body temperature checked.
Those with a temperature higher than 37.5°C are not allowed to donate, and prospective donors are then asked to sanitise their hands with an alcohol-based hand rub provided by the NBTS.
Each donor is provided with a disposable face mask and asked to put it on before approaching the registration counter. Within the premises, donors keep a distance of two metres between each other at all times.
Micallef assured that all surfaces, such as couches and tables, are thoroughly and frequently wiped down with disinfectant. Additionally, the couch is covered with disposable towels that are changed between one donor and another. He added that nasal swabbing to test for COVID-19 is not carried out on blood donors.