Over the past 20 years, Zhang Bi has donated her blood more than 130 times to help people in need.
Zhang, 44, an employee of a company in Yichang, Hubei province, first donated blood in 1998 while studying at Wuhan University of Technology. “It was in the summer when I was with my classmates, and medical workers were promoting the idea of voluntary blood donations,” she recalled. To mark her upcoming graduation with a degree in international trade and commerce, she decided to donate 200 milliliters of blood. “In fact, I was jittery at first,” she said. “But with the nurse explaining things and providing guidance, I gained basic knowledge and finally calmly finished the blood donation.”
After graduation, she began to donate blood once or twice a year. In May 2001, an incident touched Zhang and deepened her understanding of voluntary blood donation. Her brother, a traffic policeman, was attacked and got hurt in a lung after dealing with an illegally operated motorcycle. He suffered blood loss and needed massive blood, but for lack of supplies in the blood bank, all the police officers in the city volunteered to donate blood. “Finally, with the help of the volunteers, my brother was saved,” she said.
From then on, she began to donate blood every six months, the maximum allowed, according to the Blood Donation Law. In 2006, Zhang's father had a heart surgery and needed blood. Zhang had donated so much blood that she had earned enough “credits” for receiving the blood her father needed from the blood center.
Yi Xiaomei, an official at the Yichang Blood Center, said there are more than 400 regular blood donors in the city. “They have made great contributions to blood donation in the city,” Yi said. “Zhang Bi, as a typical example, tries her best to guarantee the quality and quantity of blood.” Zhang said donating blood is not only good for the recipient Abut improves her own mental and physical well-being. “I hope I can continue as long as my physical condition can meet the donor requirements,” she said.
