JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Health organized a blood donation campaign for hospital staff to stock up supplies ahead of Hajj. Entitled “The World in the Heart of the Kingdom,” the campaign collected blood from employees at Mina’s main emergency hospitals, including Mina Al-Jaser, Mina Al-Wadi, and Mina Shara Jadid. The drive is part of the health ministry’s efforts to strengthen hospital services for pilgrims. Health workers, including nurses, doctors and administrators, as well as scouts, and security personnel volunteered to donate blood. The hospitals also organized several lectures and training courses for emergency workers and 11 outpatient clinics have been equipped with barcode scanners to scan electronic wristbands used to record patients’ information. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health confirmed there had been no cases of epidemics or quarantine disease among the pilgrims arriving for Hajj season. More than 1.6 million pilgrims have been provided with preventive services through health outlets since Aug 12 The ministry’s hospitals in Makkah and Madinah continue to provide specialized services for pilgrims, during the Hajj season. The hospitals carried out 187 cardiac catheterizations and 10 open heart operations, and 1,280 blood transfusions. The ministry also provided emergency services in Makkah and Madinah hospitals to 280,773 pilgrims, with 17,820 pilgrims visiting clinics, and medical centers receiving 246,156 outpatients, the ministry stated. For Hajj, the Ministry of Health follows developments and changes in the global health situation, in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other internationally-recognized health bodies, such as the International Centers for Disease Control.