CAIRO - You feel that angels are watching, as many people voluntarily donate their blood to save others' lives. These people donated blood at an event organised by the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, in collaboration with the National Blood Transfusion Services Centre (NBTSC), affiliated to the Ministry of Health. "There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, Egyptian road accident victims and Egyptian undergoing surgery need blood," said German Ambassador Michael Bock, one of the first donors yesterday. "Secondly, the Embassy is part of Egyptian society. If something happens to us here, we too will need blood; it's quite normal and logical for me to donate blood here as I would in Germany," he added. Many donors were very happy to help other people in dire need of a drop of blood. Some of them were residents of Zamalek, where the Embassy is located, and others were workers at the Embassy. "I decided to donate because it will beneficial to a lot of people and it's also good for my health," said Noha Stephanos, who works as a translator at the Embassy. "I was encouraged when I saw how nice the doctors and the nurses were and when I was assured that the whole process was very hygienic," she added. The event gives us hope, because Egyptians are usually reluctant to donate their blood, because of rumours that the procedure is unhygienic, as the equipment is contaminated. "The culture of donation in Egypt is not huge, but we hope that this will change in the future," said Dr Mona Abu Bakr, a doctor at the NBTSC. "For this reason, our centre holds awareness campaigns at universities and seniors schools, so people can realise that donating is safe and healthy.”
