With the reopening of the terraces, the public holidays in May and the previous confinements, blood donations are becoming increasingly rare. In order to avoid reaching a critical level of stocks, the French Blood Establishment launched an alert on Thursday. And there are no contraindications if you are already vaccinated against Covid-19. This is what explains Jimmy Mohamed, the health consultant of Europe 1.
“Between confinements and public holidays, blood donations were less numerous than usual but the needs are constant. I remind you of a single figure: 10,000 donations are needed every day to treat patients. The French Blood Establishment is looking for two rare blood groups: groups O and B. If you have time, whatever group you are, go donate blood!
There is no contraindication if you are vaccinated against Covid-19
Vaccination is another probable explanation for this drop in donations. It is quite possible to go and donate your blood immediately after the vaccination. This rule applies to all vaccines (Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Janssen) and remains the same whether it is your first or second dose.
Why is it necessary to donate blood?
The classic donation will allow blood to be transfused to patients. It is often used during surgery, for patients who have heavy treatments such as chemotherapy, for a person who has had a difficult delivery with a hemorrhage during the delivery or for road accidents. Finally, transfusion is also necessary in connection with blood diseases such as leukemia or sickle cell anemia.
How does a blood donation work?
It is extremely fast. It takes an hour of your time in total between reception, questioning, blood donation and the rest phase. If you donate whole blood, you will be collected red blood cells, platelets and plasma. These items will go to three different patients: in one hour of your time, you can save three lives.
For more information and to find the nearest collection point to you, visit the the French Blood Establishment.”
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