The State Blood Transfusion Council (SBTC) in Maharashtra has banned substantial gifts and incentives to promote voluntary blood donation, emphasizing ethical practices. Instead, donors can receive small, symbolic items like pens or keychains. The move aims to align with national guidelines and ensure blood donation remains altruistic, preventing commercialization while encouraging a culture of voluntary contributions.
Read more here - https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/sbtc-bans-substantial-gifts-incentives-ethos-voluntary-blood-donation-9671835/
In the volunteering space itself, there’s a lot of debate on reimbursement of expenses to volunteers, providing refreshments, offering a small stipend, providing certificates for 2-5 hours of volunteering, etc. Some people think these take away from the spirit of volunteering, while others feel we shd offer such incentives if we want more people to volunteer.
What do you think??