Greece’s President Mrs. Katerina Sakellaropoulou hosted a blood donation drive at the gardens of the Presidential Hall on Monday on the occasion of World Blood Donor Day.
The event was organised by the National Blood Bank with the support of over 120 volunteers who successfully collected a total of 132 units of blood.
Attending the event was infectious diseases doctor Sotiris Tsiodras, of the Health Ministry's coronavirus committee, who briefed the president on the pandemic's developments.
President Sakellaropoulou said "giving blood voluntarily is not philanthropy, but a basic pillar of public health," and spoke of Greece's urgent need for blood annually, the supply of which dropped sharply during the pandemic. Greece, she said, needs 550,000 units of blood annually, of which 60% comes from volunteer donors.
The first-time event at the presidential residence underlines the importance of overcoming prejudices and fear around giving blood and of encouraging more people to sign up as blood donors, she said.
