Help save lives by signing up to be a blood donor

NHS Blood and Transplant is urging people in Lincolnshire to commit to saving lives by registering as new blood donors during the Missing Type campaign.
The Blood and Transplant Service needs more donors.The Blood and Transplant Service needs more donors.
The Blood and Transplant Service needs more donors.

Blood donation saves lives. But NHS Blood and Transplant is uniting with 25 blood donor organisations across 21 countries to highlight an almost 30 per cent international drop in people becoming blood donors last year compared to a decade ago.

Last year, 21,975 people in Lincolnshire gave blood at least once.

New blood donors are crucial for ensuring there is the right mix of blood groups to meet patient need in the years to come.

There is a particular need for more young blood donors and more black and Asian donors.

Last year, 11.2 per cent of our donors in Lincolnshire were aged 17 to 24-years-old, and 60.4 per cent were aged 45 or over.

Mike Stredder, Director of Blood Donation at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “Blood donation is an amazing gift and transfusions save lives in Lincolnshire every day.

“Whether it is patients receiving treatment for cancer, blood disorders, after accidents or during surgery, or new mums who lost blood in childbirth, blood is an absolutely essential part of modern healthcare.

“Thanks to the generosity of our current donors, hospitals have the blood needed to treat patients and there is not a crisis in blood stocks.

“We need people from Lincolnshire to register today as new blood donors at www.blood.co.uk.

“We particularly need people with blood groups O negative, and A negative to come forward and people from black and South Asian communities.

“Don’t worry if you’ve never given blood before and don’t know what blood group you are – you find out shortly after your first donation.

“What’s important is that you register as a donor and book your first appointment to donate.”

To sign up as a new donor, visit www.blood.co.uk or call 0300 123 2323. Donating blood should take no more than an hour.

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