In 2023, Mexico registered 1.6 million blood donations in the country, which represents a growth of 8.3 percent, compared to previous years.
However, only 8.3 percent of these donations were voluntary and altruistic, while 91.7 percent were replacement, that is, when donors do so to replace the blood used by a family member or friend. In the case of San Luis Potosí, it is indicated that there is no excess demand for blood, but rather that opening up to social networks makes a patient’s request evident.
It is known that this country occupies second place in Latin America, after Brazil, in blood donations, complying with the WHO parameters, which recommend between 100 and 300 donors per 100,000 inhabitants, however, the country continues to work on increase the proportion of altruistic donors through awareness campaigns and the elimination of barriers that previously excluded certain groups, most likely why this topic appears more commonly on social networks.
In the case of San Luis Potosí, it has been said that in 2024, first place in donations was reached, driven by the work of the State Center for Blood Transfusion (CETS), achieving the participation of 24 thousand altruistic donors and benefiting more than 70 thousand patients.
The delegation of the Mexican Social Security Institute, IMSS, has reported on rare occasions that the capacity to respond to the needs of this liquid has been strengthened.
The social communication area of the Health Secretariat of the Government of the State of San Luis Potosí was questioned about the reasons why the need for blood appears more and more on social networks, and they warned that it is not an over-demand , but rather there is now the opportunity to go viral that is required from donors.
“They are published because regardless of whether the blood in the blood banks is used, any person who is going to undergo a surgical procedure is asked for donors, this precisely to always have units available, and to use them in emergencies or for transfusions cancer patients usually require on a regular basis. Some families who publish do so because it is an emergency and a specific type is required.”
Just last July, Esmeralda García Rangel, Head of the Blood Transfusion Department of the Health Services of the State Government, reported that during the First Semester of 2024, 4,137 candidates were evaluated, with 2,718 altruistic donors. have made it possible to provide blood components to Hospitals belonging to the State Network.
