The method used by Dr. Agote prevented blood from clotting in a container by using sodium citrate. This discovery, which allowed for blood conservation, was subsequently applied worldwide to replace direct transfusions, which did not allow accurate measurement of the amount of blood transferred and carried multiple risks, such as infections, embolisms and thrombosis.
Despite the enormous advances made in medicine around the world, nothing replaces blood. As a national campaign pointed out, it is neither bought nor manufactured and can only be obtained by donation. Hence the importance of the voluntary act of donation, which is nothing more and nothing less than a gesture of solidarity that every year, in every corner of the country, helps to save hundreds of thousands of lives.
It is also worth highlighting the work of the health staff who work to ensure that the blood donated by the volunteers is safe, thus avoiding the transmission of diseases. At this point it must also be said that the experts agree that the safest way to obtain this vital fluid is the one that has as its protagonists people who act selflessly, without any pressure, that is, they voluntarily decide to donate regularly and without expecting anything. in exchange. It is worth remembering, however, that anyone in good health, over the age of 18 and under the age of 65, and weighing more than 50 kilograms, can donate blood.
Donors should also know, for their own peace of mind, that the amount of blood that is extracted in each donation is an amount that the human body takes without any problems when the donor is in good health. In these cases, the extraction does not cause any subsequent ailments as the body itself will regenerate it in a few days. The donation process lasts a maximum of fifteen minutes and at the end the donor will receive a series of simple tips on how to manage in the hours following the extraction. In our province, as in the rest of the country, blood donation is a process that is carried out according to strict biosecurity regulations since all the material used is sterile and disposable.
All this information should serve to sensitize citizens on the enormous value of the act of donating solidarity blood, habitually, without anyone asking for it. In this way, hospitals can have sufficient donations to meet the needs of patients.
According to official data, in our country about 40 percent of the population donates blood out of familiarity with the person who needs it and in an unusual way. The goal pursued by the various awareness campaigns is to obtain one hundred percent regular and voluntary donations from healthy people. If this goal is achieved, there is no doubt that a great step will have been taken for the benefit of the entire community.
A single donor can save up to four lives. In fact, from the blood of every person who donates, and which always passes through strict security checks, red blood cells are extracted which are used when people lose blood or suffer from anemia or decrease in red blood cells and, on the other hand, it is they separate platelets, which serve to prevent bleeding or bleeding. As mentioned, it is worth highlighting the work done by health personnel in hemotherapy centers and blood banks, especially in our province, to promote donation. This work must be accompanied by all citizens, who must foster the cooperation and altruism of those who, with their disinterested participation, contribute to the construction of a more united and health-conscious society.
