18 bags of blood were collected from the Twilight Basketball program in its bid to help with the Port Moresby General Hospital’s Sir Brian Bell Foundation (SBBF) Youth Blood Drive.
The Twilight Basketball program, which is run by the Basketball Federation of Papua New Guinea (BFPNG), saw 50 people volunteer to donate blood at the Taurama Aquatic & Indoor Centre last week.
Many of the Papua New Guinea U-18 national team members got involved donating blood.
BFPNG Chief Executive Officer Joel Khalu said the program is aimed at getting the youth of PNG, aged 16-25, to engage in social responsibility; and one way is to become life time blood donors supporting their community.
“The Blood Drive event is about more than just giving blood. It is about bringing awareness regarding the importance of maintaining healthy life habits,” said Khalu.
He added that not only was every volunteer given the chance to help the 1 in 3 people who will need blood in their lifetime but also every blood donor received a ‘mini-physical’ prior to donation which included checking haemoglobin levels, blood glucose levels, weight and blood pressure.
“Their health messaging aligns perfectly with what we already endorse through our Hoops for Health program, so it makes sense for us to partner with Port Moresby General Hospital and the SBBF Youth Blood Drive initiative.
“It was fantastic to have so many people, young people in particular come down and support the cause by donating blood,” commented Khalu. Hopefully more young people will follow the lead and example set by our basketball players and also give blood," said Khalu.
The Twilight Basketball program which is free has been a huge hit with over 300 people getting involved every Friday night for the past month.