Every day, hundreds of patients across the Philippines rely on blood transfusions to survive life-threatening events and conditions, and serious illnesses like cancer and anemia.
Yet, the supply of safe and voluntary blood donations often fall short of demand.
A dedicated social worker is on a mission to organize donation drives while regularly donating blood himself. He aims to inspire others to see the collective impact that even a single drop of blood can have.
Dalfhen Samson, a licensed social worker since 2009, has dedicated his career to serving others.
He is now the project manager of SM Foundation’s health and medical programs. As such, he goes beyond his usual responsibilities to organize vital activities, chief of which are blood donation drives.
In 2010, he donated blood for the first time to help a stranger in need, and he hasn’t stopped since.
“I just really wanted to help the patient who needed blood very badly then,” he said matter of factly when asked about his first experience.
Since then, he has donated blood more than 10 times, plus three platelet apheresis.
“I can’t forget the first time I donated apheresis platelets at the Philippine Blood Center because while they were drawing blood, a cancer patient was on standby for the blood transfusion,” he recalled.
Even at the height of the pandemic, when most people stayed home, he and his team pushed forward with safe, scheduled bloodletting activities in select SM malls.
“The need for blood doesn’t stop during times of crises, nor should our will to help,” he said.
As he continues to spearhead the organization of SM Foundation’s blood donation drives, Samson says that many of those who received help from SM’s blood program later returned not as recipients but as donors themselves.
“So many who have been helped have profusely expressed their gratitude, and become advocates of blood donation drives or became blood donors,” he said.
As the number of those that SM Foundation has helped grows and with the increase of its partners for social good, the number of blood donors increase. These people spread the word among their family, friends, and fellow workers that donating blood is a life-saving mission.
Samson dreams of a future where no patient’s family has to endure the added stress of scrambling around or desperately waiting for blood.
“I dream that every patient who needs blood will have access to it right away. I hope the time will come when looking for blood will no longer be a problem because we know that taking care of a seriously ill patient is most difficult, and doubly so if blood is urgently needed. The cost of this also adds to mounting expenses that the family often faces,” he said.
For those willing but unsure of how to begin, Samson said: “If you’re healthy and willing, check the schedule of SM blood donation drives at your nearest SM mall or go to the nearest Red Cross chapter. There are always people in need, and you might be their lifeline.”
If you want to contribute to this life-saving mission, here are the blood donation schedules for April: SM Center Pulilan, April 16 and SM City Tanza, April 21.
