Bombs, Blood and Meltdown

The last two weeks saw me clocking up a few firsts for my time in Nigeria.

I experienced my first bombing which was detonated in the car park of the Abuja Police Headquarters.  I missed the sound of the explosion but watched the smoky aftermath from my office window.  News reports suggest that it claimed eight lives, injured several others and destroyed about eighty cars.  It's certainly not the first bombing in Nigeria, although the fact that it was a suicide bomber is a new phenomenon.

Photo courtesy of nigeriadailynews.com

I was challenged with my first IT meltdown thanks to a nasty little virus that crashed my system.  It very much made me realise how reliant I am on technology to keep me in touch with the outside world.

And on a much lighter note, I donated my first pint of blood to the Nigerian National Blood Service as my little way of supporting World Blood Donor Day.

The theme for World Blood Donor Day 2011 was “More Blood More Life” aimed at reinforcing the urgent need for more people globally to become life-savers by voluntarily donating blood on a regular basis.

Approximately 93 million units of blood are currently donated globally to save lives and improve health.  Adequate supplies are crucial to replace blood lost in childbirth (a major cause of maternal death), to treat anaemia that threatens the lives of children who have malaria or are undernourished, for treating congenital blood disorders, and for routine and emergency surgery including life-saving treatment for the growing number of people injured in road traffic accidents.

It is estimated that Nigeria needs 1.13million units of blood annually to meet the country’s requirements for blood transfusions.  With a population of 158million, that means that just 0.7% of people could make all the difference.


There's loads of benefits to giving blood:

• “Doing good to someone in need not only helps the needy but also gives psychological satisfaction to the donor.  One of the easiest but valuable donations is the donation of blood for the needy."
• Blood donation helps to maintain healthy iron levels in the blood which reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke (and fights hemochromatosis).
• Blood donation helps to stimulate the production of new blood cells.
• Blood donors receive basic medical screening (weight, blood pressure, HIV, hepatitis viruses and syphilis) meaning that they are more in control of their own health status.
• Evidence shows that voluntary donors are at lower risk of transmitting life-threatening infections through their blood than family and replacement donors, and especially paid donors.

PS: 4 days until I depart for Tanzania so my blog will be especially quiet over the next few weeks.  Stay tuned though for some exciting photos and stories of adventure, fun and laughter!