DOST-NCR upholds a-life saving act through voluntary blood-letting

A gift is something that is enjoyed twice – first by the giver who revels in the pleasure of giving something special (tangible or intangible) and then also savored by the recipient of the gift. With most things in this world, there is only a limited amount of what you can give away. Fortunately, generosity and kindness are not bound to these same material limitations. You will always have something to give out to everyone.

The act of giving doesn’t have to be limited to an exchange of presents during Christmas time or birthdays. This has been very evident during the Department of Science and Technology-National Capital Region’s (DOS-NCR) “Mobile Bloodletting” that was spearheaded by its exuberant Regional Director Jose B. Patalinjug III and its Disaster Risk Reduction Management (DRRM) Group. The whole-day campaign was made possible through the agency’s partnership with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) on 5 February 2021.

This effort was the last DOST-NCR activity that was backed by the DOST’s Undersecretary for Regional Operations Brenda L. Nazareth-Manzano on 25 January 2021 so the agency decided to push through with it in honor of the late USec targeting at least 50 bags of blood to be donated to PRC. 81 donors signed up on the pre-registration, 63 of them successfully donating their blood and 18 were deferred due to PRC’s screening.

What You Give Out is What Comes Back

The more you give, the happier you feel. Giving without expecting anything in return is as effortless as breathing. Public service suggests almost the same connotation as it is defined as an intention to serve all members of a community regardless of income, physical ability or mental acuity. These facts make giving and public service inexplicably intertwined.

Some donors from other DOST agencies were also present during the blood donation drive including the DOST Central Office, Industrial Technology Development Institute (ITDI), Philippine Textile Research Institute (PTRI), Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), Technology Application and Promotion Institute (TAPI), National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), Metals Industry Research and Development Center (MIRDC), as well as some employees form “Life Guard,” DOST’s security office.

When asked why they have decided to join the campaign, a group of young people from the DOST-ITDI said that they were moved by the reports (that they see on social media platforms) about the inadequacy of blood in the country’s blood banks and because they want to “do something good” for our fellow countrymen by donating their blood in order to preserve and save somebody else’s life.

By Nikki Arcinue