Today, September 17, the third consecutive blood donation campaign was held in the National Assembly, an initiative of the Health Committee under the patronage of the Chairperson Natalia Kiselova.
The event, organized to celebrate Sofia"s holiday, also became a demonstrative example of the fight against the acute shortage of blood and blood products in the country.
The atmosphere in the parliamentary corridor was filled with quiet contemplation, interrupted only by the rustling of documents and the whispers of the participants.
Dozens of Members of Parliament and employees joined the noble initiative.
The Blood Donation Campaign
The chairman of the health committee, Kostadin Angelov (GERB-SDS), announced that about two hours after the start of the action at 9:00 am, ten MPs had already donated blood, and others continued the procedure.
"We chose today"s date to celebrate Sofia"s holiday and show solidarity with the serious problem of blood donation in Bulgaria", explained Angelov. "We want to raise public awareness that donating blood saves human lives", he added.
The Chairperson of the National Assembly, Natalia Kiselova, emphasized the importance of the action,
"Only those who have been in need understand how important what we are doing today is".
She pointed out that the participation of the MPs is indicative of the fact that
"on certain causes we can be together and set a personal example". "I hope that everyone who donates blood will be more cautious on the street when they see acts of violence, because every drop of blood is life", said Kiselova, expressing hope for a reduction in cases requiring blood transfusions.The Deputy Minister of Health, Dobromira Kareva, defined blood donation as
"one of the noblest causes", emphasizing that "thanks to this humane act, every hour somewhere in the world a human life is saved".She highlighted the importance of personal example in popularizing blood donation.
The chairman of the Bulgarian Red Cross, Acad. Hristo Grigorov, described blood donation as
"an act of saving human life, showing a big heart".He stressed
"unity as the key to achieving positive results".The director of the National Center for Transfusion Hematology, Krasimira Terzieva, defined blood donation as
"the quietest, but the strongest act of human solidarity". "This is one of the few things a person can do for others, to donate a part of themselves so that another can live " quietly, gratuitously, without knowing whose life is saved", she said.She called for support for the transfusion system,
"because we are the backbone of modern emergency and planned medicine", adding that "without blood it is not possible, and blood has no substitute".