On the occasion of the World Blood Donor Day, which we remember every year on June 14, Kia Motors Slovakia also decided to support the idea of voluntary blood donation. On June 20, the main canteen changed into a small blood transfusion station for three hours, which worked at full capacity. Employees thus contributed to the blood bank of the Zilina hospital with almost 16 liters of blood.
How did a first time donor Eva Karnetova from the Human Resources team handle it? “I have considered the blood donation many times, but I never had enough courage to do it. When there was a chance to donate blood directly at our plant, I decided to overcome my fear and try it. I personally did not feel any difficulties connected with the blood taking. I realized that my blood only can be essential to someone’s life. To me, it was a very positive feeling and I would definitely like to repeat it in the future.“
The head of the National Blood Transfusion Service in Zilina, MUDr. Maria Laurincova, commented on the event: “We are very satisfied with the entire event. We had 38 donors, who donated blood for the first time in Zilina, and 19 of them were new donors, who donated blood for the first time in their life. I am so grateful to the Kia management for willingness to support this humane deed.”
In Slovakia, about 170 thousand blood donations are made each year, but there is still a shortage of voluntary donors. Blood is donated only by 5% of inhabitants, although the criteria for blood donation are met by around 25% of population. Blood is a highly valuable fluid, which is irreplaceable nowadays. Without cooperation of regular and voluntary blood donors, lives of ill and injured people could not be saved. Acknowledgements and great thanks go to all those people, who joined the ranks of “life saviours”.
