Dominican Republic blood deficit exceeds 200,000 pints, reports director of the SRSM

Santo Domingo, DR

The shortage of blood in the Dominican Republic exceeds 200,000 pints, according to the director of the Regional Metropolitan Health Service (SRSM), Dr. Edisson Feliz Feliz, who revealed the data during the inauguration of the voluntary donation day organized by the institution he directs.

Feliz Feliz indicated that since March 2020, as a result of the impact of the pandemic, the donation of the important liquid began to become “irregular” due to the fact that volunteers stopped attending.

Based on this, the health specialist explained that the SRSM organized the operation that will take place at its facilities from this Tuesday, November 16 through Friday, November 19, 2021, from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm.

“With a view to strengthening access to safe blood, the Metropolitan Regional Health Service, with the support of the Friends Against Childhood Cancer Foundation (FACCI) and its president Alexandra Matos de Purcell, we have initiated this second Voluntary Blood Donation Day, motivating awareness of the need to make regular donations, in order to have timely and affordable access to safe blood,” she said.

The director of the SRSM also pointed out that with the day they seek to mitigate the need for blood products in the hospitals that belong to the public health network, mainly the maternal, children’s, and trauma hospitals.

The physician also stressed the importance of promoting voluntary donation with a view to strengthening donor clubs.

“This regional service has a metropolitan donor club, as well as sentinel clubs in our districts, with a total of 715 external donors,” she explained, while stressing that only when “we all get involved: the media, churches, neighborhood councils, community leaders…” will the blood shortage be reduced.