Dubai:The DHA’s Dubai Blood Donation Centre (DBDC) was reaccredited by American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) after adhering to 100 per cent compliance.

The centre first received its AABB accreditation in 2012 making it the first centre in the UAE and one of the few centres in the Middle-East region to achieve this accreditation.  Since then the centre has maintained its accreditation status and has been reaccredited every two years.

Dr. Hussain Al Samt, Director of Pathology and Genetics Department at the DHA, said: “We are incredibly proud of our team at DBDC who have maintained the highest level of quality with regard to all aspects of blood collection, processing, testing, storage and distribution. This accreditation highlights the high-level of standards that are followed at the centre. International accreditations are important to benchmark ourselves and play an important role in the delivery of safe and high-quality services.”

AABB accreditation evaluates all aspects of the blood transfusion chain right from the vein of the donor to the vein of the patient. AABB has set the most rigorous standards to govern the safety of blood transfusion.

Al Samt said: “Seeking this accreditation demonstrates an organization's commitment to advanced learning, continuous improvement and innovation by adhering to highest possible donor and patient safety standards.”

Al Samt highlighted that the blood donation centre is the main blood donation centre in Dubai that collects 50% of the total blood collected in the UAE.

In 2020, more than 66,000 donors visited the centre and 49,500 units of blood were collected. It supplies blood and blood products to all DHA hospitals as well as 40 private hospitals in Dubai.

DBDC organized 658 mobile blood donation campaigns in 2020.

DBDC has been committed to serving the needs of their local communities and depends on voluntary donations. An independent study conducted in 2020 highlighted that customer happiness and trust was 97 per cent.

Al Samt reiterated the importance of donating blood and blood products such as plasma. “With each blood donation, you can potentially save up to three lives.”

Regular blood donation takes 15 minutes, while platelet collection takes 45 minutes to one hour. Thalassemia patients require regular blood transfusions every few weeks. Platelet collections are also vital and needed by cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Since platelets are blood cells critical to stop bleeding, these are used in life-threatening bleeding situations- post-surgery or after accidents.

The centre is located in the premises of Latifa Hospital and carries out mobile blood donation drives across the community in Dubai. 

Individuals interested to donate blood can download the DHA smart mobile app and go on the DAMMI blood donation service section. All details such as eligibility criteria and an eligibility questionnaire to evaluate whether the candidate can donate blood are available on the app.