Most Venerable Thich Thanh Quyet, Vice Chairman of the VBS’s Executive Council and head of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy, speaks at the press conference to introduce the festival (Photo: http://dangcongsan.vn) Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam Red Cross Society and the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha (VBS) will work together to organise a blood donation and organ donation registration festival at the Vietnam Buddhist Academy in Soc Son district of Hanoi on August 4.
Speaking at a press conference on August 2, Most Venerable Thich Thanh Quyet, Vice Chairman of the VBS’s Executive Council and head of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy, said that so far, about 400 people have registered to donate their blood and 50 others have signed up for organ donation.
He said that the organising board has called for Buddhist followers nationwide to response to the programme.
Director of the Vietnam National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion Bach Quoc Khanh said that the event will be held every year, making the Vietnam Buddhist Academy a destination for all blood and organ donors.
Currently, Vietnam has seen a high demand for organ transplantation. As of July 2019, 25,000 people have registered to donate organs, tissue and body parts after their death. So far, more than 3,000 organ transplantations have been conducted.
Over the years, communications on tissue and organ donation have seen positive results, with great contributions from Buddhist dignitaries and followers.
In May this year, nearly 600 monks, nuns and followers registered to give away their organs and tissue at Giac Ngo pagoda. The “Dao Phat ngay nay” (Buddhism today) Foundation run by the Giac Ngo pagoda had previously organised the programme three times in 2015, 2016 and 2017, with the total number of registering people reaching 1,360.-VNA
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