Interview with Konstantin Pashkov

Donor movement in the transport industry is at the highest level. Officials from the Ministry of Transport donate blood twice a year at their office and participate in campaigns. Director of the Administrative Department of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation Konstantin Pashkov told us about the growing popularity of blood donation among transport workers.

How did the donor day tradition begin in the Ministry of Transport?

Mikhail Vladimirovich Klyonov, vice-rector of the Russian University of Transport (MIIT) brought the idea. He proposed to held donor day at the Ministry of Transport, when he was an employee of the Administrative Department of the Ministry. As you may know, it is completely unrelated to his professional activities. We have modern, creative employees, with many interesting ideas. One of them was to launch Donor Day. This fall, we have already had the fifth Donor Day. It is held twice a year - in February and in September. In June, our employees took part in retreat, held in the building of the All-Russian Professional Union of Workers of State Institutions and Public Services of the Russian Federation. The collected blood was donated to the Dmitry Rogachev National Research Center of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology.

How many people do regularly participate in your Donor events?

It’s not about the quantity, but about the conscious decision of each person to help. If we talk about numbers, approximately 30 people are recorded each time, due to some circumstances around 20 come, but not all of them can donate blood because of health reasons. In a result, we regularly have 10-15 donors. It should be mentioned, that the number of volunteers in the Ministry is growing steadily with every donor day. Our good tradition is gaining momentum. So, we can congratulate ourselves.

Each donor movement has its own informal leaders. Do you have such leaders and how can you describe them?

Every time we see new faces and this is nice. Of course, there are informal leaders. They are representatives of our departmental railway security and the minister’s secretariat. We are very grateful to them.

Tell us more about your Donor days.

The so-called mobile blood transfusion station comes to us. It allows to donate whole blood or its components. The station is serviced by several medical workers, they are located in the Ministry of Transport Medical Center. The work is delimitated by zones. In one, a person can relax, have tea, in the next one - a blood donor receives a memo and agrees to the procedure. In the third zone, a person is examined by a doctor to check if he or she is healthy and can be a donor. Then a small amount of blood is taken for an express check of the hemoglobin level, the number of leukocytes and platelets. The last zone is a place of donation procedure. The day of donation, as well as the day of the related medical examination, are days off for the employee. A free lunch is organized for donors in the dining room of the Ministry. Also, the donor has the right to add an extra day to vacation. I believe that this is a good incentive allowing to attract more people to this wonderful tradition.

You have your own medical center, which conducts donor events. What opportunities does it provide for donors on an ongoing basis?

The medical center is organized to provide medical care to employees of the Ministry. We do not have a stationary blood transfusion point. In general, we have a departmental medical institution to which employees of the Ministry of Transport are attached. This is the Central Clinical Hospital of Civil Aviation. In this Hospital, our employees annually undergo a medical examination, during which they check their health with a wide range of medical specialists. They also have the opportunity to add the clinic as a part of general health insurance.

What measures of support for blood donation among employees, by your opinion, are most effective?

I think adult people have an understanding that donation is a good thing. People donate blood, first of all, because they have the opportunity to help. We support them by providing the possibility to donate in the office of the Ministry of Transport. It is very convenient, no need to go anywhere. For some of them the determining factors may be social support measures: day off, free lunch, getting the badge “Honorary Donor of Russia”.

How is the donor movement developing in the transport industry? What subordinate organisations can be mentioned?

It should be said about The Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport. Together with industry universities, they take part in such events. Lokomotiv Football Club, a structure of Russian Railways also holds blood donation campaigns. Donation is developed among various railways offices in the regions. A number of Russian airports should be mentioned. The donor days were held in the air harbors of Moscow (Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo), Yekaterinburg (Koltsovo), Nizhny Novgorod (Strigino), Khabarovsk, Rostov-on-Don. A train dedicated to blood donation was launched in the Moscow metro. While citizens go to work, home, to a meeting or for business, they have the opportunity to know more about donor movement. It is a good PR-campaign. It is not a complete list of transport organizations conducting Donor Day. It is nice to know that transport workers make a significant contribution to the important undertaking!

Our traditional question: what would you wish to donors and those who are just about to join the donor movement?

I would like to say that being a donor is an honorary title, it deserves respect. I want to thank donors for their courage and for the desire to help others. To those who are going to join the donor movement, I want to say that this is noble, but not everyone can become a donor. You need to be confident in your health, in your abilities. I want to wish health and well-being to everyone, and to donors, and to those who are going to join us, and to those for whom blood is being collected. The most important is that the donation should be regular, and not urgent, it the only way to ensure a constant supply of blood components, including for victims in emergency situations. A person who donates blood regularly is a donor whose blood is the safest due to regular examination and monitoring of his health. From the group of repeatedly donating donors, a group of “personnel donors” is formed, from which a group of “urgent” reserve can be formed.

Other interviews

13.12.24

Interview with Stanislav Davydov

In 2024, for the first time, the All-Russian Professional Skills Competition among Blood Service institutions included a category titled "Best in Profession: Public Relations Specialist." Based on expert evaluation and public voting, the winner was Stanislav Davydov, Head of PR and Blood Donation Advocacy at the St. Petersburg City Blood Transfusion Station. With over 15 years dedicated to promoting blood donation, Davydov has played a key role in shaping the modern Blood Service institution, implementing effective promotional tools, organizing impactful campaigns, and initiating ambitious projects.

12.12.24

Interview with Ilgiz Vafin

Every year, the Blood Service holds an All-Russian contest of professional skills, where it identifies the best doctors in the industry, the best teams and donor projects. In 2024, a representative forum once again brought together delegates from all regions of Russia in Moscow. Ilgiz Akhmatovich Vafin, the chief physician of the Kuzbass Blood Center, won in the Best Transfusiologist Doctor category. We talked to the laureate about his medical and scientific work, as well as about the prospects for blood and bone marrow donation in Kuzbass.

10.10.24

Interview with Egor Dubov

The donor movement became important and unifying for the youth project «Leaders of the Nizhny Novgorod region». The donor days organization is a laborious process that requires attention. How to start preparing the first donor action, how to motivate colleagues, why it is important to provide educational work among future donors, says the activist of the Youth Project «Leaders of Nizhny Novgorod region» and organizer of the donor actions Egor Dubov.

12.08.24

Interview with Evelina Tomilova

Chelyabinsk regional blood transfusion station was the first in the All-Russian competition of professional skills of the Blood Service in the nomination «Do not miss important» and category «Best poster» with the project «Give five!» The author of the project Evelina Tomilova, a PR manager, told about the poster. It is an effective tool of propaganda, thanks to its visual and concise nature, actively used to promote donor actions among residents of the Southern Urals. In addition to blood donation, posters are also about friendship and unity around the good cause of peoples traditionally living in the region.

18.04.24

Interview with Oleg Sheps

In March, a man came to the Samara Regional Blood Transfusion Clinical Station anonymously. He aroused the great interest of many donors and employees. Not everyone recognized Oleg Sheps at once. He registered like all donors, filled out the necessary documents and waited in the corridor. There was a whisper that a participant of the TV show «Battle of Psychics» is in the queue. Fans among donors and their family members turned out to be many. At each stage of the donor journey, Oleg was expected to take a photo. He didn’t refuse to anyone and told what motivated him to donate blood.

21.03.24

Interview with Natalya Demina

Direct interaction with donors and feedback are important in a successful donor promotion. How to make it effective, says Natalia Demina, the PR manager of the District Blood Transfusion Station in Nizhnevartovsk on the example of two projects «There is a contact» and «ABC of donorship». The projects received the recognition of colleagues and became laureates of the All-Russian competition of professional skills of the Blood Service 2023.

06.02.24

Interview with Irina Karikht

The Blood Service of the Republic of Crimea has published a fairy tale “About Vik, Nadezhda and the path to Danar” especially for young patients of the oncohematology department of the Republican Children's Hospital. This project was highly appreciated by the jury of the All-Russian competition of professional skills of the Blood Service and deservedly received a Laureate diploma. Irina Karikht, PR-manager of the Blood Center of the Republic of Crimea and co-author, told us about.

20.12.23

Interview with Aizan Sultanmuratova

The nurse is with donor throughout entire donation journey. Aizan Sultamuratova told us how to be close and how to help donor to be calm and confident. She is the winner of the All-Russian competition of professional excellence of the Blood Service in the nomination “Best Medical Worker 2023”, category “Best Nursing Personnel”, nurse of the Republican Blood Transfusion Station of the Chechen Republic.

20.11.23

Interview with Anna Maximova

The cheerfulness and combat nature helps Anna Valeryvna Maksimova, the daughter of a railway officer, to cope with life’s difficulties. She is a laboratory doctor, head of the clinical diagnostic laboratory of the Krasnoyarsk Regional Blood Center #1, and the laureate in the nomination «Best medical worker 2023».

25.10.23

Interview with Eduard Bezuglov

Many professional football clubs actively support the donor movement. Fully aware of their responsibility to society, the flags of Russian sport are providing great assistance in the development of blood donation - they are enlisting the army of fans in a noble and important cause. One of the leaders in this direction of social work was the football club of CSKA. Three times a year it holds Donor Days at the stadium «VEB-Arena». The head of the medical department of PFC CSKA Eduard Bezuglov told us how fans of the big game become donors.

29.09.23

Interview with Svetlana Gubskaya

Mother of the many children from Samara gave 200 liters of immune plasma to save hundreds of children’s lives. The Blood Service of Samara region nominated Svetlana Gubskaya to participate in the regional public action «People’s recognition» in the nomination «Recognition and Respect» and asks for donor support in voting.

15.08.23

Interview with Igor Paramonov

The bone marrow and hematopoietic stem cells donation is a complex and important topic for promotion. Igor Vladimirovich Paramonov, MD and director of Kirov Research Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion of FMBA told us how to present this to the largest number of people, and how to fill the Federal Register of Potential Donors of Hematopoietic Stem Cells and Bone Marrow.

14.06.23

Interview with Ludmila Podlesnaya

Blood donation is the conscious choice of a strong man. It is only necessary to support - informatively, morally, emotionally - someone who really wants to help. Ludmila Podlesnaya, chairman of the trade union organization of the K.G. Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technologies and Management, believes that this is the main task of the donors' movement.

25.05.23

Interview with Anna Krupko

Donor Day has become a good tradition at the Omsk Technical University. Dozens of students and lecturers are looking forward to this event as an opportunity to express themselves, save someone's life. Anna Krupko, coordinator of the Donor Day and student of the Engineering Institute of the Omsk State Technical University, told us about the main donor event at the university.

04.04.23

Interview with Natalya Zaitseva

The projects of the Samara Regional Clinical Blood Transfusion Station have been nominating at professional medical competitions for several years now. Their creativity and effectiveness are highly appreciated by advertising and pr specialists. This year, the two projects won awards in the professional skills competition of the Blood Service.

09.03.23

Interview with Natalya Volkova

The project «Don't Hibernate» by the Yaroslavl regional blood transfusion station became the winner of the All-Russian competition of professional skills by the Blood Service and underlined the importance of regular blood donation. Natalia Volkova, PR-Manager of the Yaroslavl Regional Blood Transfusion Station, told how the project was created.

15.02.23

Interview with Julia Cheresova

The real story of saving a woman in labor with a rare phenotype by a donor formed the basis of the award-winning project “You can be a superhero!” in the "Best Video" category in the "Don't Miss the Important" nomination of the All-Russian Competition of Professional Skills of the Blood Service. The donor-savior came straight from the tundra on a snowmobile! The work was presented by the Blood Transfusion Department of the Nadym Central District Hospital of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, headed by Julia Cheresova.

30.01.23

Interview with Patimat Abdurakhmanova

The blood transfusion station in the Republic of Dagestan willingly supports volunteers and public figures to promote blood donation in the region. An example of such cooperation came to the original publication - a brochure in which the donor himself talks about stem cell donation. The creator of the booklet is Patimat Abdurakhmanova, volunteer, head of the «Tut Dobro» charity foundation. She told us about the new project, which became one of the winners of the All-Russian Competition of Professional Skills of the Blood Service.

29.11.22

Interview with Irina Lositskaya

The first person the donor interacts with is the nurse. Not only professionalism is very important, but also personal involvement. Laureate of the All-Russian competition of professional skills Irina Lositskaya, operating room nurse, chief nurse of the Blood Center of the FMBA of Russia, told how to combine these qualities, what depends on it and why ethics issues have become so relevant in the age of high technology.

31.10.22

Interview with Alexandra Vnuk

The base for the laureate project of the Federal Medical-Biological Agency of Russia Blood Center «On the Pulse of Life» are education, information, loyalty. Alexandra Vnuk, head of the donation development department of the FMBA of Russia Blood Center told us how to implement them on a large scale and in relation to various target audiences of the donor community.