Student volunteering club BRAC University Response Team (BURT) in association with BRAC University Medical Center and Bangladesh Thalassemia Foundation has organized a two-day-long “Blood Donation Camp” at the university’s Mohakhali campus auditorium.
By the end of the event on 28 June 2022 a total of 187 bags of blood were collected, which would be provided to thalassemia patients. Donors also received screening of their blood for a number of diseases. Thalassemia is a hereditary blood disorder that causes the body to have less hemoglobin than normal. Hemoglobin enables red blood cells to carry oxygen. Thalassemia can cause anemia, leaving patients fatigued. Patients require one to two bags of blood each month.
The closing event was attended by Dave Dowland, Registrar, Tahsina Rahman, Joint Director, Student Life; Dr. Mohd. Raeed Jamiruddin, Adviser of the BURT and Assistant Professor of the Department of Pharmacy, and MA Matin, President of Bangladesh Thalassaemia Foundation.
Some 700 blood donors are registered with the BURT, which was formed by BRAC University students when the pandemic first emerged in 2020. Currently comprised of over 150 volunteers, it carries out initiatives such as arranging emergency medical services, distributing clothes among low-income families in winter, providing iftar for orphans and security and cleaning staff during Ramadan and arranging financial assistance for students in need.