According to the French blood establishment, the situation due to the Pandemic of Covid-19 and a high rate of absenteeism of health personnel.
Le Monde with AFP
Blood reserves lack 30,000 pockets to regain the level of safety needed with transfusion needs, alert Tuesday, February 8 The French blood (EFS).
“The blood product stock is below the safety threshold and this for several days. 70,000 red blood cell pockets are now in reserve when it would take 100,000”, writes the EFS In a communiqué , qualified as “Vital Emergency Bulletin”. And to alert the fact that “this situation could be dangerous in the short term to treat patients. This perspective is absolutely uncomprous”.
The call was Relayed on Twitter By the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, asking “the mobilization of all so that each patient can dispose of the blood he needs to be neat”.
Effects of COVID-19
According to the public institution responsible for collecting blood, this situation due to the pandemic. “Cancellations of collections in companies and universities, [the] lower donor mobilization [and the difficulties of recruiting medical personnel have considerably affected blood collection”. The Omicron, particularly contagious variant, “added two critical elements: the self-adjournment of some blood donors and a high absenteeism rate of EFS staff”, continues.
In the context of the COVID-19, the wearing of the mask and more broadly the respect of barrier gestures are mandatory during a blood donation, but “nor the sanitary pass or the vaccinal pass are necessary to access it” , specifies the EFS. And “people who have presented symptoms of COVID-19 must wait fourteen days after disappearing symptoms to give their blood or fourteen days after being positive tested,” recalls the statement. As for the recently vaccinated people, they have no delay to wait after the injection to give their blood.
A list of collection points is available on the site dondesang.efs.sante.fr/trouver-a-collect or on the blood donation app.