history of the holiday
This Day is dedicated, first of all, to the donors themselves - to people who donate their blood for the benefit of the health and life of complete strangers. This Day is also dedicated to doctors who take blood, monitor the sanitary state of blood transfusion stations, develop methods and equipment, and carefully examine the drugs being handed over.
The date was introduced into the Russian holiday calendar 10 years ago, in 2007. The decree signed by the head of state on February 20 helped to this end. The authors of the idea of establishing this event are public activists and donor services who want to prove the importance of donors for medicine. The decision was made in the course of a roundtable meeting held in the State Duma of the Russian Federation.
The date of the event is not random. On April 20, 1832, doctors performed the first donor blood transfusion. The procedure was supervised by a very young specialist in the field of obstetrics Andrei Wolf from St. Petersburg. The latter took delivery, in which the woman became ill due to bleeding. To make up for the loss, Wolf poured her husband's blood into the woman in labor, which was her salvation.
In Russia, National Donor Day in 2020 is celebrated on April 20. Donors participate in the events, medical workers blood collection, donor organizations. According to the law, a person who donated blood has the right not to show up for work or study on that day without losing wages.
The date of the holiday is timed to coincide with the world's first blood transfusion on April 20, 1832. It was conducted by a young St. Petersburg obstetrician Andrei Martynovich Wolf. On this day, he took delivery. Suddenly, the mother's condition deteriorated sharply. She started bleeding. Then the doctor decided to give the woman her husband's blood. This saved the patient's life.
Holiday traditions
On National Donor Day, everyone who wants to donate blood at medical centers. Press conferences and events are organized, the participants of which highlight the problems of donation. Honorary donors are awarded.
About donation
The donation procedure in the Russian Federation is determined by the Federal Law No. 125 "On the Donation of Blood and Its Components" dated July 6, 2012. People donate whole blood, platelets, or blood plasma. The process takes 5-15 minutes. After donating blood, the donor receives a free lunch or cash reward. Whole blood is allowed to donate 1 time in 2 months, but no more than 5 times a year.
- June 14 is celebrated
- The word "donor" comes from the Latin donare - "to give".
- The donor must be an adult, weigh more than 50 kg, and not have cancer, tuberculosis or AIDS. You can not donate blood to pregnant and lactating women, girls during menstruation. People with tattoos or body piercings are not allowed to donate until a year after they are applied or pierced. It is forbidden to donate blood to those who have drunk alcohol in the last 48 hours.
- 350-450 ml of blood is taken from the donor at a time.
- People who donated blood 40 times or donated plasma 60 times are considered honorary donors of Russia.
- According to the WHO, people who donate blood regularly live 5 years longer than the average person.
- Every third inhabitant of the planet needs a donor blood transfusion at least once in his life.
- In 1900, the Austrian physician Karl Landsteiner discovered blood groups.
April 20 is the National Donor Day in our country. When people hear this word, blood donation is usually implied, although in reality many other biological fluids and tissues of the human body can be donated. But it is blood donors who are most actively involved in preserving the health and life of many seriously ill, wounded or traumatized people. During periods of disasters, natural disasters or terrorist attacks, the need for additional volumes of any blood group increases several times, although in ordinary life it saves someone's life every day. But there are many myths and misconceptions associated with donating blood. There are diseases that can be an obstacle to donation - and you need to be aware of this.
The meaning of the word "donor" in translation from Latin means "to give". This is a person who gives something to others. The most common term in medicine, where donors are people who donate blood, sperm, bone marrow and many other tissues and organs of the human body for other people (relatives, acquaintances or completely strangers to them). Those patients who receive blood or organs and tissues from donors are called recipients. Today, almost any adult and healthy person can become a donor and donate not only blood. You need to declare your desire to the doctors, who will enter all the data about a person after examining certain indicators and assessing his health in a special database, indicating which donor of which tissues or fluids this person is. In our country, blood donation is most common, while in European countries, the system of donation of bone marrow, sperm, breast milk and even organs or their parts (liver, kidney, heart) is actively working.
Blood donor: truth and myths
All doctors and medical communities never tire of expressing their gratitude to blood donors, whose role in saving the lives of many thousands of patients cannot be overemphasized. Stocks of blood and its components are 99% formed precisely at the expense of those people who voluntarily and consciously became a blood donor. They regularly or occasionally come to specialized departments of hospitals in order to donate their blood for the needs of critically ill patients. Today there is even a special title "Honorary Donor". It is given to those people who repeatedly, regularly donate their blood for medical purposes. For these people, the state provides certain benefits, although most of them do this not because of material wealth, but at the call of their hearts. The international holiday is celebrated all over the world on June 14, and our country additionally honors its donors on April 20. Today, modern technologies have also come to the service of medicine: those people who have the title of "Honorary Donor" and regularly come to the drop-off points with mobile phones, often receive messages - "your blood saved lives today." This is the best gratitude.
Blood is one of the most important tissues in the body. It is the source of life for a person, and its significant loss in a short time can become fatal if the losses are not replenished through transfusion. However, many myths soar around donation and blood collection that need to be dispelled so that people understand the importance and safety of this procedure.
Many would like to donate blood, but they are afraid that it will be very painful. In reality, the pain from a puncture of the game is not stronger than with a conventional intravenous injection or a strong pinching of the skin in the elbow area. For many, blood sampling is associated with the risk of contracting any disease, but it is important to understand that all procedures are performed by medical workers only with sterile instruments that completely eliminate the risk. The package with needles and systems is opened in front of the patient so that he can personally verify its sterility.
Many are afraid of the length of the procedure, but the blood donation points are arranged so that the whole process will not take more than 1-2 hours. For an organism that does not have any diseases, such blood loss is completely harmless, moreover, a slight stress from taking blood even stimulates and rejuvenates the body. And even more so, you shouldn't think that if you donate blood just once, there will be no sense in it. For some, these 400 ml of blood can be a real salvation.
What is the most popular blood type?
Doctors say that they need any blood group, since it goes not only for transfusions, but also for the preparation of drugs - erythrocyte mass, concentrate of coagulation factors, plasma, etc. Whatever the blood type, you can come to the clinic and it will be accepted without objection. Sometimes for individual patients, a rare blood group or Rh factor may be required, and then doctors turn to people who are in their database with the same indicators for help. Usually, about 40 ml of blood is taken from the donor at one time for research and about 400-450 ml of blood for creating a bank or preparing preparations.
There are a number of requirements for donors, if not observed, doctors will refuse to take blood. These are age up to 18 years and weight less than 50 kg, colds or exacerbation of somatic pathology, accompanied by fever. Also, the sampling will not be made at a pressure of less than 100/70 mm Hg. Art.
Also, the reason for refusal is serious heart defects and diseases, bronchopulmonary pathology and digestive disorders in severe form, liver and kidney pathologies, problems with blood coagulation and any acute conditions identified during the preliminary diagnosis. An obstacle to blood sampling is also the presence of skin pathologies in the sampling area and throughout the body, but after all acute phenomena subside and the person recovers, he can become a donor.
The hero of one of the American teenage series presented an unusual surprise to his beloved on Valentine's Day... He went to the hospital, where he donated blood, which impressed the girl incredibly. Thus, the guy showed gratitude, because he himself needed multiple transfusions in childhood. If Dylan from "Beverly Hills 90210" (we are talking about this character) lived not in the USA, but in the Russian Federation, he most likely timed his act to April 20. It is on this date that the National Blood Donor Day is celebrated in Russia.
April 20, 1832 is considered the day when the successful transfusion of this liquid tissue was first used and recorded in the annals of domestic medical practice. The manipulation was carried out in St. Petersburg by a young obstetrician Andrei Martynovich Wolf. The loss of blood by the woman in labor was so great that the doctor decided to borrow from the bloodstream of her husband. The operation went well, the woman survived. Wolf was lucky: the recipient and the donor did not conflict either in the group or in the Rh factor. The medic at that moment simply did not know about it.
Doctors did not know about the existence of such important categories as blood groups until the beginning of the 20th century. Only in 1900, Karl Landsteiner, a doctor from Austria, was able to identify and explain the cause of the previously unknown deaths that occurred after the infusion. After all, if there is rejection due to the mismatch of the group, the recipient either suffers from severe complications or dies. The patient's immune system rejects, according to its ideas, tissue.
After the discovery of a grouping of four main characteristics was made, the therapeutic method of transfusion began to develop very quickly. At the same time, humanity has learned to divide blood into the necessary fractions and components, as well as to preserve it. This made it possible to deliver the biomaterials necessary for transfusion to points remote from the sampling stations.
The very word "donor" is translated, as a donor, from the Latin verb donare - to give as a gift. But, as it turned out, a person who donates their tissues free of charge only wins in the case of blood donation. His body triggers mechanisms for activating hematopoiesis, as a result of which defenses and immunity are stimulated. As a result, donors, according to statistics, live 4-5 years longer than the average person. They more easily tolerate significant blood loss, less often suffer from cardiovascular diseases, their cholesterol level is normal.
Since no more than 450 ml of biomaterial can be taken at a time, and up to one and a half liters are required during transfusion, at least three donors are required per recipient. Despite the fact that 15-17% of the population can become blood donors, in practice there are ten times less initiative volunteers. Therefore, popularizing information about the need to replenish donor blood supplies is so important. Perhaps, having learned about the National Blood Donor Day in Russia, more people will come to the transfusion station wishing to give hope and life.
There are many brave people in our country who are ready to help others in difficult times by sharing their blood. Usually, we are talking about situations when a person's life depends on the presence of this important component of our body. Millions of people participate in this humane procedure every year. Donor Day 2018 is dedicated to such courageous people.
What date is
This holiday was established in our country quite recently. In 2007, a round table was organized in the State Duma, where problems related to blood donation and service were discussed. It was then that the decision was made to celebrate this day annually. The date of the holiday was April 20. This number was not chosen by chance. On April 20, 1832, the world's first blood transfusion was performed. This procedure was carried out by a Russian doctor from St. Petersburg - A.M. Wolf. During the delivery, his patient began to bleed profusely, which threatened the life of the woman in labor and the baby. Despite the fact that the midwife was young enough, he took decisive action and poured the woman's blood from her husband. Such bold actions saved two lives.
In 2018, the holiday, as usual, will be celebrated on April 20, 2018. It will be Friday, a working day.
Legislative framework
Donation in our country is regulated by a special law No. 125 of 06.07.12. It describes in detail the procedure for donating blood. According to this legislative act in our country, the following can be surrendered:
- blood plasma;
- platelets;
- whole blood.
In time, this procedure takes no more than fifteen minutes. Before donating blood, patients undergo a medical examination. Donors receive money and free one-time meals for their humane act.
There are certain restrictions for donors. Anyone can donate whole blood no more than once every two months. No more than five such procedures are allowed per year.
According to statistics, about two million people in Russia need blood transfusions every year. Usually, these are people suffering from terrible diseases, such as:
- oncology;
- hematological diseases;
- gynecological problems.
In addition, people who have suffered from industrial accidents, accidents, etc., as well as people who have been involved in an accident, may need blood. An example of such situations is: explosions in the Moscow and St. Petersburg metro, the crash of airliners, etc.
Events
On the day of the donor, various actions are held in Russia, the purpose of which is to popularize such an important matter as donation. The basis of such events is a special state program, which is aimed at improving the blood service.
Hospital workers, representatives of local authorities, workers of various social services participate in numerous conferences on donation. All these activities are widely reported by means of mass media, radio and television.
On April 20, honorary donors are awarded special certificates and badges. Few people know that the title of honorary donor is awarded only when a person donates blood at least forty times and plasma sixty times. Such people receive a material bonus of 10 thousand rubles. Honorary donors have the right to:
- choose the time of your vacation yourself;
- visit medical institutions out of turn;
- served in sanatoriums and rest homes in the first place.
International donor day
In May 2005, the World Health Assembly was held. At it, representatives of many countries expressed their support for voluntary donation. During this international forum, important resolution WHA58.13 was adopted, which recommended that donor day be held on 14 June.
The date of the holiday is the time of birth of a doctor from Austria - Karl Landsteiner. His merit is the discovery of blood groups.
Every year this day is dedicated to a specific topic. The aim of the holiday is to attract as many participants as possible who wish to donate their blood for humane purposes.
Every minute in the world there are many events that require blood transfusions. However, not every person on our planet can use the blood of a donor. Most blood is scarce in developing countries. At the same time, it is there that most of the world's population lives.
How donating blood affects the body
The doctors who followed the donors noted that donating blood has a positive effect on their health.
This applies primarily to the immune system. A person who regularly donates blood stops the development of "cumulative" diseases associated with metabolic processes. This applies to:
- gout;
- atherosclerosis;
- disturbances in the work of the pancreas;
- diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and liver.
Studies by American and Finnish scientists show that regular blood donation can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease. Excess blood puts additional strain on the heart. Systematic donation has a beneficial effect on blood vessels and heart function. A kind of blood ballast is removed. Donating blood makes the blood-forming organs work with greater force.
The person involved in the donation can more easily tolerate the loss of blood in the event of accidents or road traffic accidents. Sometimes it can help save the life of the donor himself.
Also, on the basis of numerous studies, it has been proven that regular blood donation contributes to the renewal of the whole body and slows down aging. It is no secret that donors live longer than ordinary people by an average of five years. An analogy in this regard can be drawn with women who, due to their physiology, lose blood every month. Most likely, it is for this reason that they live longer than men. The women themselves also claim that after critical days the condition of their skin and hair improves markedly.
The psychological state of the donor is of no less importance. Usually, after donating blood, they experience an emotional uplift. It is associated with a person's awareness of a good deed that he did for the sake of saving someone's life.