NHS Blood and Transplant has triggered an “amber alert” and are asking hospitals to limit the use of blood due to low levels of blood stocks. The situation is expected to last four weeks which should enable national blood stocks to be rebuilt.
All hospitals have been asked to limit their use of blood in some patient care, to optimise overall supply. Most treatments and surgery will continue as planned, and hospitals will continue to carry out any urgent, emergency or trauma surgery, cancer surgery, transplant surgery and blood transfusions to treat people with long term conditions.
We work as efficiently as possible, and continue to have appropriate supplies of blood and related blood products, blood donors are always needed to maintain national blood stocks.
NHS Blood and Transplant are asking their existing O Negative and O Positive donors to urgently make an appointment at their donor centres if they don’t have one already. Go to blood.co.uk or download the blood app to check local availability and please book if you can.
National blood stock levels are published online and available here:
https://hospital.blood.co.uk/business-continuity/blood-stocks/