Media Release
Mangaluru, Mar 23: Catholic Sabha Mangalore Pradesh ®, Derebail unit in association with Yuva Spandan Derebail, Derebail Parish Sports Club, Lions Club of Mangalore Ladyhill and Rotaract Club of Mangaluru city on Sunday March 21 organized a blood donation and health awareness camp at Derebail Church hall.
The blood donation camp was blessed and inaugurated by Fr Austin Peris, parish priest of Most Holy Redeemer Church, Derebail at 9 am. Anil Patrao, president of Catholic Sabha Mangalore Pradesh ®, Derebail unit, Sheela D’Souza, vice president of the Parish Pastoral Council, Derebail Church and Nelson Castelino, community development convener of Catholic Sabha Mangalore Pradesh ®, Derebail unit and convener of the programme were present among others.
There was a very good response from the general public and a total of 76 units of blood was collected by the staff of the Blood Bank of Wenlock District Hospital, Mangaluru, DK under the guidance of Dr Sharath Rao J, MD Path, senior consultant and HOD from the department of Immunohematology & Transfusion Medicine, Regional Blood Transfusion Centre (RCOE), WDH, Mangaluru.
The Health Awareness programme was inaugurated at 10.30 am by lighting a lamp. The dignitaries present were Fr Austin Peris, parish priest, Sheela D’Souza, vice president of Parish Pastoral Council, Gaulbert Pais, secretary of PPC, Most Holy Redeemer Church, Anil Patrao, president, Dora D’Cunha, secretary, Nelson Castelino, community development convener of Catholic Sabha Mangaluru Pradesh ®, Derebail unit, Dr Sharath Rao J, MD Path, senior consultant and HOD from the department of Immunohematology & Transfusion Medicine, Regional Blood Transfusion Centre (RCOE), Dr Sharath Babu, MD, Pulmonary Medicine, medical officer and member of District Level Expert Committee on COVID 19, Wenlock District Hospital, Mangaluru, DK, Lydia D’Costa, representative of Lions Club of Mangalore Ladyhill, Darryl D’Souza, president of Rotaract Club of Mangaluru city, Prajwal Sequeira, president, Yuva Spandan Derebail, Sandesh Mascarenhas, president of Derebail parish Sports Club.
Anil Patrao, president of Catholic Sabha Mangaluru Pradesh ®, Derebail unit welcomed the gathering. He explained the mission of the Catholic Sabha of creating awareness in the society, be it social, political, educational, human rights, civic responsibilities, environment and health, among others.
Fr Austin Peris, parish priest of Most Holy Redeemer Church delivered the inaugural address. In his address, Fr Peris stated that wise people say, many spend the first half of their life span in amassing wealth at the cost of their health, and, in the second half, the wealth they earned is spent on regaining the lost health. Hence, health should be taken care of from the beginning. As the Latin saying goes 'Mens sana in corpore sano' meaning healthy mind in a healthy body, the mental attitude and a clean conscience are important for a healthy lifestyle because many sicknesses are rooted in the mind.
Dr Sharath Rao J, MD Path, senior consultant and HOD from the department of Immunohematology & Transfusion Medicine, Regional Blood Transfusion Centre (RCOE) of Wenlock District Hospital, Mangaluru, DK, gave a talk on the importance of blood donation and the health benefits to the individuals arising out of regular blood donation.
Dr Sharath Babu, MD of Pulmonary Medicine, medical officer and member of the district-level expert committee on COVID 19 from Wenlock District Hospital, Mangaluru, DK gave a talk on the subject 'The significance of primary prevention for a healthy life – the present and the future' and answered the audience' queries on COVID-19 vaccine.
Gajanan Bhat, health insurance advisor gave a talk on the importance of health insurance and the need for its coverage and answered the audience' queries in this regard.
Dora D’Cunha, secretary and Juliet D’Silva, immediate past president of Catholic Sabha Derebail introduced Dr Sharath Rao J, MD Path, Dr Sharath Babu, MD of Pulmonary Medicine, respectively. Nelson Castelino, community development convener and the convener of the programme proposed the vote of thanks. The programme was compered by Pramila Furtado, joint secretary, of Catholic Sabha Derebail.