Male blood donors in Shropshire urged to come forward

Men in Shropshire are being urged to donate blood amid concerns of a gender imbalance.

Last year, new statistics showed that for every 100 women who started giving blood, only 70 men did the same.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) says it is a concern because men have higher iron levels, and only men’s blood can be used for some transfusions and products.

The public body says that without more men starting to give blood, blood stocks will come under increasing pressure in future years.

It has a 26 per cent increase in the target number of new, first time male donors it needs this year, to get a better balance for the long term.

NHSBT has launched a national campaign this month to encourage male donors to come forward.

Mike Stredder, the head of donor recruitment for NHSBT, said: “All our donors are amazing. But we need more than 68,000 men to start donating blood this year.

"Men’s blood can be used in extraordinary, lifesaving ways, but we don’t have enough new male donors coming forward.

"This is not about recruiting as many donors as possible – it’s about getting the right gender mix.

"We are focusing the campaign on our donor centres, where there is more capacity for new donors.”

Engaged

NHSBT thinks the recent gender imbalance in new donors is due to combination of factors.

A recent research survey indicates men are less likely than women to think that donation will make a difference.

In recent years, NHSBT has recruited more on social media and says it social accounts are more popular with women.

Over the past year, it has engaged with organisations such as BT Sport, ITV2, and the computer gaming industry, to try to reach more men.

Men are valuable donors because they have higher iron levels, so they are also less likely to be deferred for low haemoglobin.

Only men’s blood is used for complete blood transfusions in newborn babies and is preferred for intrauterine transfusions – when the baby is transfused while still inside the womb.

A transfusion is needed when a fetus has severe anemia – a low level of red blood cells which are needed to carry oxygen throughout the body.

Only men’s blood is used for making fresh frozen plasma, which contains clotting proteins.

Plasma is used for trauma patients with massive blood loss and rare diseases.