Blood service wants new donors to come forward

BLOOD donors in Fenland are being urged to book appointments to give blood because vital reminder letters have been delayed after recent postal strikes. The National Blood Service is calling on donors who have not given blood in the last 16 weeks to help

BLOOD donors in Fenland are being urged to book appointments to give blood because vital reminder letters have been delayed after recent postal strikes.

The National Blood Service is calling on donors who have not given blood in the last 16 weeks to help save lives over the next few weeks. It also wants to encourage new donors to come forward.

The postal strikes have meant many regular donors have not received invitation letters with details of when and where to give blood. There has also been a decline in blood stocks.

NBS spokesman Gareth Bell said: "It is important for people to remember that blood stocks are still healthy and hospitals are getting all the blood they need, but support is needed now to ensure they remain this way.

"Blood products only have a very short shelf life, just five days in some cases, and a constant flow of donors are needed to maintain stocks. Because some of the most loyal donors might not have received the details for the coming sessions, we would like to remind everyone how important it is to give blood."

Just five per cent of the eligible population give blood and yet 7,000 voluntary donations are needed every day to meet hospital demand.