Chennai, July 01: MGM Healthcare and MGM Cancer Institute has announced an exclusive Master Health & vaccination Package for blood donors, a specialised health incentive to honour and monitor the well-being of repeat voluntary donors. The announcement was made during the observance of World Blood Donor Day 2026 that was organised at their campus to honour the selfless contributions of voluntary donors.
Managing Director Dr. Prashanth Rajagopalan and Chief Operating Officers, Mr. Nilesh and Mr. Padmanaban launched the initiative and unveiled a replica of the new MGM donor card.
In line with the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) theme, “One drop of humanity. Give blood. Save lives,” the event brought together prominent medical experts, healthcare executives, NGOs, and donors to champion the critical cause of regular, safe blood donation.
The hospital also recognised outstanding civic contributors, including NGOs, first time and repeated voluntary whole blood and component donors.
The hospital management had launched a multifaceted motivation and awareness campaign to bridge the gap between donors and the hospital. As a part of the campaign, a blood centre landing page was unveiled on the hospital website to offer educational information about blood donation and facility for Online donor registration.
This apart, awareness on safe blood transfusion was created through Art and Educational videos detailing the rigorous, safe ‘vein-to-vein’ process was circulated in MGM social media handle; community outreach programs were organised through public, corporate, and in-house blood donation camps; Dedicated donor care protocols like a 24/7 MGM blood centre donor helpline, free parking, digital distribution of non-reactive reports and availability of healthcare professionals from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm to ensure maximum accessibility for donors are implemented.
Delivering the keynote address, Dr. Shanmugha Priya R.A, Senior Consultant Transfusion Medicine, MGM Healthcare underscored the urgent medical mandate to transition from emergency-driven donations to building a sustainable habit of regular voluntary giving.
“MGM blood centre has collected more than 700 blood and component donations in June through donor motivation and NGOs, Dr. Shanmugha Priya said. She emphasised the need for specialised components for transplants and oncology.”
Addressing the gathering, guest speaker Dr. K. R. Balakrishnan, Chairman – Cardiac sciences, Heart, & lung Transplant and Mechanical Circulatory Support, MGM Healthcare, elaborated on the ongoing, high-volume requirement for whole blood and its components in complex surgical procedures, emphasising that a robust pool of repeat voluntary donors is essential to ensuring a safe blood supply for transplant recipients.
Expanding on technical advancements, Dr. M.A Raja, Director and Senior Consultant, Medical oncology, MGM Cancer Institute added upon, “critical role of apheresis components, such as Single Donor Platelets (SDP) and granulocytes. He emphasised that these specialised products are lifelines for oncology and haemato-oncology patients undergoing aggressive cancer treatments, outlining safe protocols and the ideal frequencies for apheresis donation”.