Agreement signed between French national blood service and Princess Grace Hospital’s Blood Transfusion Centre

H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince, surrounded by Christophe Robino and Isabelle Azarian, Secretary-General of the EFS for the PACA/Corsica region (on the left) and Caroline Rougaignon-Vernin (on the right). In the foreground are François Toujas and Benoîte Rousseau de Sevelinges, on the right. © Government Communication Department – Stéphane Danna

Benoîte Rousseau de Sevelinges, Director of Princess Grace Hospital (CHPG), and François Toujas, President of the Etablissement Français du Sang (EFS), the French national blood service, signed a joint agreement between the EFS and the CHPG Blood Transfusion Centre today. The signing ceremony was attended by H.S.H. the Sovereign Prince, Christophe Robino, the Minister of Health and Social Affairs, Caroline Rougaignon-Vernin, Vice-President of the CHPG Board of Directors, and representatives from the Monaco Red Cross and the Monaco Association of Blood Donors.

The purpose of the agreement is to establish the procedures for cooperation between the EFS and the Blood Transfusion Centre on training, regulatory and scientific oversight, and improving the quality management system to guarantee the highest levels of safety control over time.

The agreement also formalises arrangements for the EFS to supply labile blood products, since it is not currently possible to provide all of the transfusions required in the Principality’s three healthcare facilities using donations made in the country (around 40% of the needs of the three facilities are covered by donations made in Monaco).

The occasion also provided an opportunity to highlight that the CHPG ran in the No Finish Line event to promote awareness of blood donation, a vital ethical cause.