Celebrate HM Queen Sirikit’s 81st birthday by donating blood

PHUKET: The Phuket Regional Blood Center (PRBC) is celebrating Her Majesty Queen Sirikit’s 81st birthday with a special blood donations event.

“This event will be held to show our respect to HM Queen Sirikit on her birthday and it will help us stock up more blood,” PRBC acting director Pornthip Rattajak said.

“We will give young plants to the first 200 people who decide to donate blood on that day. Furthermore donors have until the end of the month to sign a get-well message for HM Queen Sirikit,” Ms Pornthip added.

Having a short supply of blood is an ongoing concern of the center.

“Insufficient stock of blood is still a big problem even though during the school semester we got blood from students who helped us maintain a daily minimum stock of 200 units of A, B and O blood types,” said Ms Pornthip.

However, the blood type the center is desparately in need of is Rh negative, which is common among non-Asian foreigners.

“Because Phuket is a tourism destination, we need to keep a supply of A rhesus negative blood which we use almost everyday. We maintain a daily minimum of 20 units but currently the stock is low. We need A rhesus negative blood in order to continue treatment of a 66-year-old British national, Marc Harrington, who was injured in a motorcycle accident,” she added (Also, see this story).

To qualify as a donor you need to be between 17 and 70 years old (If you’re over 60 you need a certificate from a doctor). People who have multiple sexual partners, HIV, hepatitis B or jaundice, a history of drug abuse, considerable weight loss or are members of sexual minorities do not qualify as donors.

“You should avoid medications containing aspirin for three days before the donation. Donors must also wait for six months after having a tattoo or body piercing before donating blood or bone marrow,” added Ms Pornthip.

So if you’re up for it and want to do something decent, get enough sleep and avoid fatty foods the day before you show up to one of the following places to donate blood:

August 2: Trisara Phuket, (Talang), 1pm-4pm

August 5: Kan-Kroa Hall, Satree Phuket School, (Phuket town), 9am-2pm

August 6: Phuket Provincial Court, 9am-noon

August 7: Rajabhat Phuket University, 10am-3:30pm

August 12: Phuket Regional Blood centre, 8.30am-4:30pm

August 13: 1st Meeting room (3rd floor) Patong Hospital, 1pm-4pm

Mercure Phuket Deevana, 1pm-4pm

August 14: Homepro Village (Chalong brance), noon-4pm

August 20: Anupas and Family Company (Honda Showroom,Chao fa brance), 10am-3pm

August 21: Radisson Blu Plaza Panwa Beach Resort, 1pm-4pm

August 27: Vice President room, (Cherngtalay Subdistrict Administrative Organization), 10am-3pm

The blood center will accept donations at their headquarters on Rattanakosin 200 Year Road, next to Phuket Provincial Employment Office in Saphan Hin, on August 12 from 8:30am-4:30pm

For more information contact the PRBC (Tel: 076-251178. Email: phuketrbc@yahoo.com