Blood Bank urges 20,000 donations in August

Catalan hospitals will need 20,000 blood donations in August for sick and injured people – some 800 per day – and the pace of donations so far this summer has not been enough.

As a result, the Catalan Blood and Tissue Bank has made a call for the public to get involved and to make a donation this August, before going on holiday.

According to the public health agency, the heatwaves of the past month have contributed to a 20% drop in donors compared to the same period last year.

The agency says there are blood reserves for seven days, but that 10 days would be ideal, and there is special concern over negative types, for which there is only a three-day reserve.

The Blood Bank launched a campaign on July 15 called ‘Aquest estiu, anima’t a donar sang’ (‘This summer, come and give blood’), which encouraged people who donate blood to share an image on social media in order to get other people to follow their example.