Hospital CEO appealing to public for blood

By JINA AMBA
PORT Moresby General Hospital chief executive officer Dr Paki Molumi is appealing for blood.
Molumi told media yesterday that the hospital was a busy place where more patients were being treated daily and the hospital needed more blood.
He said the hospital had patients in the intensive care unit, there was a 24-hour operating theatre and averaged 40 deliveries a day and all needed blood.
“With all the services that we are providing, our stock levels are low,” Molumi said.
He said over Christmas-New Year, there were a lot of trauma cases – patients came in with head injuries, bush-knife wounds and other injuries.
“To keep these people alive, the hospital needed blood immediately, he said.
“Blood is an important commodity and is something that we cannot buy.
“If it was something that we could buy, we would purchase it but we will have to get it from people who donate blood.”
Molumi said most of their donors were from schools.
“When schools close our stock levels go down, hence, we are appealing to the public.
“Most times, we are asking the relatives to donate so that we can give it to the patients.
“Sometimes, the relatives’ blood maybe the same (group) as the patient’s blood, most times, they are not, but we depend on other donors so that the blood they donate supports other persons as well.
“Now we have reached out to the business houses to partner us using their employees so that we can do our programme. So that is a corporate blood drive, and City Pharmacy Ltd has come on board to start that programme and they are starting (today) with a blood donation drive.”