Accidents and emergency medical situations requiring blood transfusion keep getting considerably high at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi.

Owing to this, blood units equivalent to 80 people are used in a day to cater for emergency cases needing blood transfusion from the blood bank, stressing and inflicting blood inadequacy at the bank.

The Transfusing Medicine Unit at the Hospital is underscoring the urgency of restocking the bank with regular blood donations from the public.

Blood donation is a voluntary act of giving blood to be used to save the life of another person who might be known to you or not.

With an average blood transfusion requiring about three units, patients needing blood transfusion may be suffering from emergencies including serious injuries from accidents and natural disasters.

Making a blood donation uses about 1 pint, after which your body can replace all the cells and fluids that have been lost.

The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital uses an average of 80 units, equivalent to 80 people a day, and further supplies other health facilities, enforcing more pressure on its blood bank.

Head of the Transfusing Medicine Unit at the Hospital, Dr Leslie Osei, says the bank needs critical restocking to save more lives.

“At Komfo Anokye, an average of 80 units a day. That is 80 people's blood a day. So you can imagine. So at each point in time, we have to have at least eight units.

“The importance of people donating blood to the planet is different because blood is something that we cannot manufacture. When there is an emergency that is not when we go around looking for people to come and donate to replenish and stock the blood bank,” she said.

Dr Leslie was speaking at a blood donation event organized at the Calvary Charismatic Centre in Kumasi in celebration of the 68th birthday of the Founder and Senior Pastor of CCC, Ransford Obeng.

The intervention instituted by the Senior Pastor aims to assemble Christian worshipers of CCC and the general public to donate their blood to hospital banks to save lives.

According to Pastor Ransford Obeng, people with influence need to assist the needy.

“I decided to use my influence to help mankind. If God had given me a long life, and in my life, I've never needed blood, but I see a lot of people go through a lot because they need it, so why not use my influence to help people?

“I am so much encouraged by the participation. I advise everybody, especially those in leadership to mobilize the crowd to help people who are in need,” he said.

Some donors also added "this is my seventh time and I acknowledge that a lot of people need help. And I am glad I could use Pastor Ranford’s birthday for the donation.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Leslie dispels some misconceptions about blood donation and admonishes the public to fully partake.

“When somebody is dying, the patient needs blood. I don't know how that can be a bad thing when you want to save a person's life. The amount of blood that you have in your body is already about five litres. And within three days, even the liquid part of the blood will be replaced, so it doesn't affect you medically," she said.