A sharp drop in blood donations observed in Belgium

“Since the Easter holidays and even a little before, we have witnessed a drop of 20 to 25% in collections”, confirms Thursday Thomas Paulus, communication manager for the blood service of the Red Cross. The NGO is therefore looking for donors to replenish the reserves. Stocks of negative blood groups are particularly affected, but if the current situation persists or worsens, a generalized shortage cannot be ruled out. “We don’t really know the reasons for this decrease in donations, but we can assume that the Covid plays a role”, explains Thomas Paulus. “There are still 9,000 coronavirus contaminations per day at present, not to mention the resurgence of flu cases. This means that many people are sick and will therefore avoid going to a center to donate blood.

“Since the start of the Covid pandemic, collections have been on a roller coaster, they increase, then decrease, then increase again, and so on,” adds the spokesperson.