Glasgow Academy students take part in new Give Blood 4 Good programme to raise awareness of the importance of blood donation
A new initiative organised by Give Blood 4 Good has seen 15 students from The Glasgow Academy successfully participating in and completing the inaugural programme aiming to improve education and awareness surrounding blood donation in young people. The Give Blood 4 Good Young Ambassador Programme used e-learning resources to teach students a range of topics about blood donation, from learning about which blood types are compatible to the different reasons why someone might need a blood transfusion. The 15 Young Ambassadors then went on to develop their own resources to share information about blood donation with their peers.
Paul Bisland, teacher at The Glasgow Academy and Trustee at Give Blood 4 Good who led the pilot of the programme at the school said, “Running this programme at The Glasgow Academy has been a great experience for not only the students on the programme, but also for their peers as well as our staff. As part of the activities students completed to raise awareness surrounding blood donation, we hosted a ‘Blood Week’ at the school, where our students delivered personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) lessons and assembly presentations to their fellow students, and some who had turned 17 even donated blood for the first time. The atmosphere around the school during Blood Week was brilliant, and I’m so pleased that so many students and staff were engaged with the programme and learned more about blood donation.”
2021 saw blood donations in Scotland fall to their lowest levels this century, dropping by more than 13,000 according to figures from NHS Scotland. Give Blood 4 Good believes that empowering young people to understand the impact they can have on the lives of others is crucial to engaging this age group in blood donation. Since the charity was set up in October 2019 in memory of passionate blood donor, Patrick Smith, Give Blood 4 Good estimates that their work has impacted over 4,500 lives.*
“Give Blood 4 Good is on a mission to get as many people to give blood as possible,” said Education Officer at Give Blood 4 Good, Megan Petursdottir, “We know that engaging younger people can be a challenge, but by aiming to dispel myths or concerns around blood donation, and engaging young people themselves in telling that story, we hope to increase awareness of the vital role that donating blood can play in saving lives. Seeing the Young Ambassadors use their creativity and enthusiasm to share the message with their peers, as well as and how passionate they became about blood donation – and talking to others about it - was incredibly inspiring, and demonstrates the positive impact that campaigns, like the Give Blood 4 Good Young Ambassador Programme, can have.”
The charity is now looking forward to rolling out the programme to a few more schools across Scotland in the next academic year. For more information about the programme, please get in touch with Megan at mpetursdottir@giveblood4good.org. To learn more about blood donation, follow @GiveBlood4Good on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn, or visit www.giveblood4good.org.
About Give Blood 4 Good
Give Blood 4 Good (SC050155) is a registered Scottish charity aiming to improve education and awareness surrounding blood donation in young adults. Through removing the fear and mystique that can often surround blood donation, while creating a culture that empowers blood donors to donate regularly, Give Blood 4 Good hope to encourage blood donation to become a part of people’s lives from a young age.
*The number of donations are estimated from the number of donors who have registered through GB4G, where up to 3 lives can be saved or improved from each donation.