Press Release January

In cooperation with Abu Dhabi Health Services Company – SEHA, Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) managed by Cleveland Clinic, is participating in “World Blood Donor Day 2008”. World Blood Donor Day is an international health awareness event celebrated annually on the 14^th of June.

This year, the theme of world blood donor day is "giving blood regularly" to support national blood donor programs in building a stable base of voluntary unpaid donors who make a long term commitment to blood donation. The dedication of the World Blood Donor Day 2008 to regular blood donors has three broad objectives:

* To create wider public awareness of the need for regular donation because of the short shelf-life of blood components and to encourage existing and potential donors to donate blood at regular intervals.

* To recognize regular voluntary unpaid donors as healthy individuals, and therefore, they are integral to public health systems because they lead healthy lifestyles and are regularly screened to able to donate blood regularly.

* To attract the attention on donor health and quality of donor care as critical factors in building donor commitment and willingness to donate regularly.

Saif Al Qubaisi, Managing Director - SEHA said, “It is an honor for the United Arab Emirates to be the first country in the Arab world and the fifth worldwide to host the World Blood Donor Day. On this day, we would like to invite all countries to encourage blood donation which contributes in saving lives”

Added Carl Stanifer, CEO of SEHA, “Emirati’s are a generous people. As a percentage of all donors, Emirati’s are our largest group. By donating regularly, they have helped us maintain an adequate supply on hand and we encourage their continued support.

On the occasion of the World Blood Donor Day 2008, the ADBB will hold the following activities:

§ Setting-up a Health Awareness Booth at the Marina Mall – 1^st floor on the 14^th of June 2008 from 04:00 pm till 10:00 pm. The medical staff at the educational booth will perform free tests for hemoglobin, blood pressure, and blood type. Moreover, educational materials and gifts will be distributed to visitors during the campaign. ADBB blood donors are invited to the booth as well as SKMC patients who require blood transfusion constantly such as Thalassemic patients and their families.

§ Educational brochures, leaflets, and posters will be distributed to different organizations in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.

During the month of June and on the occasion of World Blood Donor Day, the ADBB launches a Blood Donation Campaign in different areas in Abu Dhabi scheduled as the follows:

Dr. Naima Oumeziane, head of the ADBB, stated that “this year we not only want to thank the donors who gave blood in previous years and recently but on this occasion we want to raise the awareness about continuously donating blood and to encourage friends and family to donate blood in an effort to save lives. The act of blood donation is unique, and blood donors are special people. Our volunteers provide nearly all the nation’s blood supply for transfusion. There is no substitute for human blood and on behalf of the ADBB we want to acknowledge the blood donors who are helping their fellow human beings and giving the gift of life. If all eligible donors give blood twice per year, it would greatly help in maintaining an adequate blood supply for the country. Eligible blood donors can donate blood 3-4 times per year safely”.

She further commented “During year 2007, the ADBB collected 20 000 units of blood and 600 units of Apheresis Platelets. Moreover, 10 000 units of blood and 300 units of Apheresis Platelets were collected since the beginning of year 2008. UAE Nationals which represent 15.1 % of all donors are the largest number of donators amongst the many different nationalities that give blood each year”.

The ADBB provides blood supply that covers the needs of governmental and private hospitals in Abu Dhabi and provides support to other Emirates. Blood transfusion is often needed for trauma victims due to accidents, burns, heart surgery, organ transplants, and patients receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or other diseases such as Sickle Cell and Thalassemia.

The Mobile Blood Bank reaches out to the community by going to organizations, public venues, universities and other areas in the community to promote blood drives. Our Team ensures compliance with international standards and that all blood donors are carefully screened to meet strict criteria and that all blood that is donated undergoes six (6) major tests for infectious diseases.

The blood donation process is very safe; the health care team at the ADBB will assess donors to ensure their safety. It is not possible to acquire any disease through donating blood because only new, disposable, sterilized equipment is used for each donor.

If the donor successfully meets the above criteria, the blood drawn will be tested and screened for the following 6 infectious diseases (in addition to ABO and RH Blood Type):

Approximately every three seconds, someone needs blood. By donating one unit of blood a donor can help save the lives of up to three people. One unit of blood is separated into several components. These components are red blood cells, plasma, platelets and cryoprecipitate.

· Red Blood cells carry oxygen to the tissues in the body and contain hemoglobin which gives it its red color and must be used within 42 days.

· Platelets help blood to clot and give those with leukemia and other cancers a chance to live. Platelets must be used within 5 days.

· Plasma helps maintain blood pressure, carries blood cells, nutrients, enzymes and hormones, and supplies critical proteins for blood clotting and immunity. Plasma can be frozen and used for up to one year.

· And finally cryoprecipitate, a component of blood obtained by freezing and thawing plasma. Cryoprecipitate is useful in replacing some clotting factors in patients missing them congenitally or because of operation or trauma.

The approximate international distribution of blood types is as follows. Distribution may be different for specific racial and ethnic groups:

In an emergency, anyone can receive type O red blood cells, and type AB individuals can receive red blood cells of any ABO type. Therefore, people with type O blood are known as “universal donors,” and those with type AB blood are known as “universal recipients.” In addition, AB plasma donors can give to all blood types.

The Abu Dhabi Blood Bank hours of operation are:

Sunday through Thursday from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm

Saturdays from 8:00am to 1:00 pm.

Organizations that would like to host the Mobile Blood Bank can contact the Abu Dhabi Blood Bank to make arrangements. To inquire, please call the Blood Bank at +971 2 665 6508

Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC), located in Abu Dhabi, UAE, operates under the management of Cleveland Clinic, named one of the top three hospitals in the USA by U.S. News and World Report. SKMC is owned and operated by SEHA, the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company, recently established to oversee operations of all public hospitals in the Emirate. It is the flagship institution for the public health system in Abu Dhabi and has several 'Centers of Excellence,' and aspires to practice contemporary medicine comparable to the best hospitals and medical centers in the world. SKMC provides comprehensive health care services in all of the disciplines relevant to the needs and priorities of the community to attain the highest levels of patient satisfaction.

SKMC consists of a 550-bed Acute Care Hospital, a 120-bed Behavior Sciences Pavilion and the 90-bed Abu Dhabi Rehabilitation Center, in addition to more than 12 specialized outpatient clinics and ten primary healthcare centers around the city of Abu Dhabi.

SEHA is health in Arabic. The Abu Dhabi Health Services Company – whose corporate identity is SEHA – is an independent, public joint stock company created to manage and develop the curative activities of the public hospitals and clinics of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. SEHA is committed to providing quality, cost effective healthcare on par with international standards measured through accessibility, affordability, choice and satisfaction. SEHA manages 8 hospital systems totaling 14 facilities, 2,472 licensed beds, more than 55 Primary Health Clinics and 14,350 employees.