Sanofi employees donate blood on World Thrombosis Day
Beirut, Lebanon- 14 October 2016 – On the occasion of the World Thrombosis Day (WTD), Sanofi pioneered in holding an internal educational session that addresses its employees along with few of specialized healthcare editors on building awareness around venous thromboembolism (VTE).The session was headed by Pr. Ali Taher, Professor of Medicine, Hematology & Oncology at the AUBMC and president of the Lebanese Joint Coalition against Thrombosis (LJCAT), Dr. Imad El Hajj, General Surgeon, Medical Director of Saint-Georges Hospital University Medical Center, Pr. Najib Gehchan, General Surgeon Medical Director of Hotel Dieu de France Hospital, and Yorguy Teyrouz, President of Donner Sang Compter association.
Venous thromboembolism is a blood clot in the vein. It’s related to two life-threatening conditions: Deep vein thrombosis which is a clot in a deep vein, usually in the leg and Pulmonary embolism which is a clot in the deep vein that breaks free, travels to the lungs and blocks blood supply leading to death.
Worldwide, one in four people die from causes related to thrombosis; it claims more lives than AIDS, breast and prostate cancer, and motor vehicle crashes combined. The main concern is that many people are not aware of this condition.
Professor of Medicine, Hematology & Oncology, Pr. Ali Taher stressed on the risky aspect of this condition stating that: “Venous thromboembolism (VTE) does not discriminate. It affects people of all ages, races and ethnicities, and occurs in both men and women. This condition is preventable so to create change and save lives, we must educate both the public and healthcare professionals about VTE”.
Hospitalization for any medical condition such as surgery, infection, cancer, respiratory disease and any other disease automatically increases the risk of venous thromboembolism. Despite the fact that international guidelines recommend for all hospitalized patients to be assessed for venous thromboembolism; still, many patients at high risk for developing the condition often don’t receive life-saving prevention.
With the appropriate education and implementation of hospital programs to assess patients at risk such as the “VTE safety zone/Thrombosis Kills program” Venous thromboembolism can be prevented and lives saved.
“VTE is one of the most common preventable causes of death in the hospital setting. It is for that reason that special criteria were selected to assess patients and determine their risk level in order to apply certain guidelines called RAM (Risk Assessment Model). This model insures a high level of compliance resulting in patient safety and protection from VTE”, said Dr. Imad El Hajj, General Surgeon, Medical Director of Saint-Georges Hospital.
Pr. Najib Geahchan, General Surgeon, Medical Director at Hotel Dieu de France hospital who directed a multinational research registry stated that: “Less than 20% of patients at high risk of thromboembolism received adequate prophylaxis after their discharge from the hospital although a majority of them received an appropriate prophylaxis during their hospitalization.”
Health benefits being many, blood donation helps in treating patients suffering from cancer, bleeding disorders, chronic anemia associated with cancer, sickle cell anemia and other hereditary blood abnormalities. It is for that reason that Sanofi partnered with “Donner Sang Compter”- a non-profit, non-governmental organization that provides blood for patients in need – with the one objective of raising awareness around blood donation.
“Raising awareness around VTE is just as crucial as spreading the word for blood donation. As a matter of fact, we are gathered here today to educate the public of the necessity to donate blood”, said Yorguy Teyrouz, founder of Donner Sang Compter association.
Following the insightful educational session, Sanofi employees felt committed to donating blood to hospitals in need as an initiative to save lives.