Sick wave creates an emergency when donating blood

The supply of blood preparations is strained nationwide: The blood donation service DRK West, which supplies around 25 percent of all clinics in Germany with blood preparations in its supply area, which also includes the Saarland, is particularly impressed. For several weeks, according to the DRK, much less blood has been donated than is needed. There are many reasons for this, the main reason being an extremely high level of sick leave in the general population.

“Infectious diseases, respiratory diseases and the flu epidemic have hit the already small group of regular blood donors even more drastically,” says spokesman for the DRK blood donation service, Stephan David Küpper. These current losses of regular blood donors would not be compensated by new donors.

At the turn of the year, the situation worsened again: the stock of blood reserves reached an extremely critical level of the daily need for blood donations, an absolutely red line. “A certain supply of blood preparations is also essential in connection with crisis prevention, but we are a long way from that,” says Küpper.

The blood donation service is calling on the population to come to blood donation appointments now and in the coming weeks. Information about donating blood and making an appointment can be found at www.blutspende.jetzt offered. Since this is a particularly tense situation in the blood donation sector, spontaneous donors are welcome even without making an appointment.

To replenish the blood bank and secure supplies, DRK Blood Donation Service West needs up to 3,500 blood donations every day. Hence the urgent call to show humanity in the form of blood donation.
The DRK Blood Donation Service West offers up to 50 blood donation appointments per day in NRW, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. Information on the possibility of donating blood, questions about blood donation in Corona times and the possibility of making a personal appointment to donate blood can be found on the homepage www.blutspende.jetzt. Companies can also support the DRK by asking employees to donate blood. Here the DRK asks to use the available resources and appointments.

You can find dates for upcoming blood donations on the website by searching for a postal code. Of course, when donating blood, no one is limited to their city or community, but they can also donate in other places and dates and in other institutions. The DRK also provides information on this.

To simplify the process, the Red Cross asks all citizens wishing to donate blood to book a personal appointment online in advance. All dates and any changes, current measures and information on blood donation can be retrieved daily by telephone (0800) 1 19 49 11 from 8:00 to 17:00 or at www.blutspende.jetzt.