By Aisyah Husna
PETALING JAYA, 20 January 2022: When Ibrahim Mat Taib donated blood for the first time in his late 20s to help save a friend’s life, he had to put aside his dread of needles.
Ibrahim, 53, a funeral director in Kota Bharu, told Malay Mail that he has donated blood 166 times since he was 27 years old.
“I recall the incident of 1997 that first made me realise the necessity of blood donation,” said Ibrahim.
“A close friend of mine who rode a motorcycle was involved in an accident with a lady in a car and he had lost a lot of blood due to the accident.”
“At that moment, none of my friends or family members wanted to donate blood because they didn’t dare, so I volunteered.”
Ibrahim, an ‘O’ blood donor, went on to say that the Kota Bharu hospital was in desperate need of blood bags and that someone needed to donate blood.
“A friend of mine who was involved in the accident was also an ‘O’ blood recipient, which made him perfect enough to be the recipient”.
“There have also been times when the hospital phoned me twice or three times a month to donate blood.”
“After donating my blood for the fifth time, I was also being encouraged to donate platelets and blood plasma to help individuals with catastrophic injuries.”
Ibrahim also admitted that there were instances when he became addicted to the concept of donating blood because he knew that it could save someone’s life.
“I hope that my other friends and family members will be motivated to donate blood because your generosity in donating your own blood will save many lives.”
Ibrahim added, “First-time blood donors may find the process uncomfortable, but once you do it on a regular basis, it becomes enjoyable because you know you’re helping someone who is in desperate need of blood.” ***
Source: Malay Mail