More volunteers giving blood in Greece

Voluntary blood donation has increased over the past two years of the crisis, with voluntary donations overtaking those sought by doctors from relatives and friends of patients, Kathimerini has learned.

According to the head of the country’s blood donation center, Haris Matsouka, 51 percent of blood donations are from volunteers, another 42 percent from friends or family of patients, 2 percent from members of the armed forces and 5 percent imported from the Swiss Red Cross.

“The volunteers are now ahead,” Matsouka said, adding that two years ago, relatives and friends of patients had provided nearly half of the 600,000 units collected every year.

The aim is to capitalize on people’s goodwill and boost voluntary donations even further, Matsouka added, noting that her center aimed to draft a national action plan and awareness campaigns in schools to boost the new trend.