Editor,

I was in church on Sunday when an announcement was made, before and after the day’s sermon, that people should donate blood after the service. The pastor, over and again, reminded that people that by donating blood they would be saving lives.

A gentleman next to me turned and asked, how come they are encouraging people to donate blood, what if someone is infected with HIV?

Through your paper, allow me to explain that all blood that is donated is checked for various diseases before being stored. Any infected blood is not kept or used for transfusion. Additionally, people should not worry about whether the amount of blood  they have is enough to let them donate. If the doctors find that one does not have enough blood, they will not let you donate.

That said, I hope to see more people donate blood.

Davis Musonera
Kigali