Consumption in the hospitals is high. The blood donation services would no longer be able to fulfill all orders in full and in a timely manner. “If stocks of blood products continue to fall, triage in the hospitals is unavoidable,” said Mr. Creator.
Then only vital interventions or treatments could be carried out. “Restricting the care of sick and injured people in the hospitals is the harsh consequence,” emphasized Creator.
Blood is needed in Austria every 90 seconds and is used in a variety of ways. Blood can be requested from hospitals around the clock, 365 days a year. About a third of the stored blood is needed urgently, for example after accidents or complications during childbirth.
Can be kept for a maximum of 42 days
A large part of the blood products is used for the treatment of serious illnesses – such as cancer therapies, anemia, heart, liver or kidney diseases. Since blood reserves can be kept for a maximum of 42 days, continuous application of the emergency medication is required. This is exactly what is currently extremely difficult.
In the St. Anna Children’s Hospital, young patients are dependent on blood products. “Because your own blood formation is often severely restricted due to an oncological disease or the vital therapies required for it,” explained Wolfgang Holter, medical director of the hospital. The treatment of the children can only be ensured with life-saving blood donations.
The situation is worrying not only in Austria. In many European countries and in the USA, Australia and Canada, the blood donation services have launched media calls because they are also confronted with a low willingness to donate, the Red Cross reported.
Source: Nachrichten
