Health: Tense supply – DRK calls for blood donations

Berlin. In view of the first wave of colds and the autumn holidays, the blood donation service of the German Red Cross has called for blood donations. The reserves are currently declining noticeably and the supply situation is tense, according to the DRK North-East blood donation service for the federal states of Berlin, Brandenburg, Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg. According to the blood donation services there, a decline in donations is also noticeable in Bavaria as well as in North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. In some federal states the autumn holidays are currently underway or have already ended, while in others they are just beginning.

For a reliable supply, supplies for four to five days are needed - in the north-east the value is currently less than three days. At the West Blood Donation Service, reserves are currently just over four days, and the clinics can still be well supplied. However, stocks could fall quickly, a spokesman said.

A spokesman for the Bavarian blood donation service emphasized that there was no nationwide shortage and no shortage of canned goods. “But we now have to avoid bottlenecks.” It is important to expand the circle of donors in order to avoid such situations in the future.

“Especially when cold waves and holiday periods lead to fewer people donating blood, it becomes clear how important a continuous willingness to donate is,” said Martin Oesterer, head of donor relationship management at the DRK Blood Donation Service North-East. That's why we appeal to healthy people to make an appointment to donate now. “Every single donation helps to ensure the care of patients.”

Whether after accidents, during operations or in the treatment of serious illnesses – blood is needed every day. However, the preparations obtained from blood donations only have a limited shelf life, it was said. Platelets, for example, which are used in cancer therapy, among other things, only have a shelf life of four days.

Anyone who wants to donate must be at least 18 years old and should book an appointment in advance. Before donating, you should eat and drink enough and bring ID with you.

You also have to be healthy. According to a spokesman for the Bavarian blood donation service, donations can be made without fever about a week after the symptoms of a cold or flu-like infection have subsided. Anyone who has had infections such as fever, influenza or has taken an antibiotic should not donate blood until after four weeks at the earliest.