14 June marked World Blood Donor Day under the theme “Give blood and keep the world beating”.

On that occasion, the Italian Blood and Beyond chapter hosted a multi-panel stakeholder workshop and a virtual booth entitled “Rethink blood use”. The recording is now available here.

Prof. Marianna Politou and Prof. Antonis Kattamis from the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens also marked World Blood Donor Day with the publication of a statement highlighting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic for transfusion dependent patients and on blood transfusions services, that refers to the recently published Blood and Beyond COVID-19 Policy Briefing. Read the article in Greek here.

In Cyprus, the Thalassemia International Federation (TIF) released a statement on that Day that raises attention to the need for legislations, systems and infrastructures that improve blood collection, provide optimal donor care and high-quality blood and blood products, and promote and implement appropriate clinical use of blood. TIF further calls on the European Commission to put into practice systems that ensure sufficiency and sustainability in blood supplies across all EU countries, especially in periods of infectious outbreaks – noting that this must be included in the current revision of the EU Blood Directive. Read more here.