National Blood Service Needs More Donors

In 2009, 2.1 million blood donations were collected from 1.6 million donors in England. While these may appear to be large figures, the reality is that it only represents 4% of the population and, in recent years, the number of active donors has fallen by around 6%.

In England, somewhere in the region of 8,000 blood transfusions are carried out every day. Therefore, the need for blood donations remains high.

As blood can only be safely stored for a relatively short period of time, hospital blood stocks need to be continuously refreshed. For example, red blood cells can only be stored for 35 days and platelets (the part of the blood that helps prevent excessive bleeding) can only be stored for five days.

In particular, blood donations are needed from black and Asian people because the current levels of black and Asian donors are very low. Certain ethnic groups often require certain blood types, so having a range of donations from a wide range of ethnic groups provides a more effective way of helping to meet the potential demand for blood.

In England, the blood donation process is overseen by the National Blood Service. The National Blood Service relies on voluntary donations from the general public in order to keep the service running. Donating blood is a relatively quick procedure (it usually takes less than an hour), and it is virtually painless.

The website of the National Blood Service provides more information about how you can volunteer to give blood, and has an on-line form that allows you to book an appointment to donate blood in a location near to where you live or work.

Source: National Blood Donor Service

Designed, Hosted and Maintained by Union Safety Services