1. ONE LOVE ONE BLOOD SAVES LIVES
BLOOD FOR LIFE
ONE LOVE ONE BLOOD SAVES LIVES
Dapo Odumeru PhD
Founder – Blood for Life
Regional QA Manager – NHSBT

2. Blood
The NHS needs 7,000 units of blood every day to be used for a wide range of reasons.
Blood supplies vital for emergency treatment for example after road accidents, for surgery, to treat cancer patients or childbirth complications.
Blood is needed every three seconds to save or improve lives

3. Gastro intestinal bleeding 11%
WHO NEEDS BLOOD?
Anaemia 23%
Orthopaedics 14%
Haematology 15%
Gastro intestinal bleeding 11%
General surgery 10%
How many units get used?
- Open heart surgery = 2-8 red cell units, 6 platelet units
- Car accident = 4-40 red cell units

4. The Challenge
The Jamaican and Caribbean communities are being urged to step-forward as the next generation of blood donors in a drive to boost life-saving supplies.
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) wants to recruit 7,000 new donors from these communities by 2020
1,000 new donors over the next year
7,000 over the next five years

5. “You don’t want my blood”
CAN YOU DONATE? (MYTHS)
“I could die as a result of donation”
“I might catch something”
“You don’t want my blood”
“You experiment on our blood”
“It hurts”!
“I ALWAYS faint”!
Many myths come about from a lack of awareness, education, ignorance and Chinese whispers!
People need to find out the correct information from the National Blood Service be it at a recruitment event, picking up the phone or logging on to the internet. This is why people like us come out to 6th Forms and colleges to talk to people to dispel some of these myths and educate you in the right way giving you the correct information.
NO - We only take out 470ml of blood (3/4 pints)
- That’s why it depends what you weigh
- The heavier you weigh the more blood you have.
- You have to weigh 7stone 12lb (50kg) or above to be a donor
HIGHLY UNLIKELY - Everything we use is single use
- Everything is packed up and opened up in front of you
- Everything is done to minimise the risk of infection
YES WE DO - We need all blood groups all the time
- Blood has a shelf life. Red cells = 35 days Platelets = 5 days
- We lose % of our donor base every year (18,000 donors)
ON OCCASIONS WE DO - Blood is sometimes used for: EDUCATIONAL, TRAINING, RESEARCH PURPOSES
ONLY A LITTLE – Out of the whole process only two part where there will be any discomfort:-
Check iron levels (Think small pin prick!)
Collect 470ml of blood ( 3/4 pint) (Small scratch)
TAKE PRECAUTIONS – We advise that you don’t treat this like some blood tests where they say nil by mouth, we advise that you have something to eat and drink a couple of hours before your donation. Food, Drink, Relax!, Aftercare, If you do feel faint tell someone!
“I smoke and drink alcohol”

6. Why Jamaican and Caribbean Donors
Donations of rare blood types are more common among black communities. Specific blood groups, like U negative, only found amongst people of Jamaican and Caribbean descent.
Conditions like Sickle Cell Anaemia that require regular blood transfusions are more prevalent amongst people of Jamaican and Caribbean descent.  
Sickle cell anaemia is an inherited genetic condition which is prevalent among Jamaican and Caribbean and mixed-race people

7. Why Jamaican and Caribbean Donors
People from the same ethnic backgrounds often share the same blood types, so recruiting more Jamaican and Caribbean donors helps to collect enough of each blood group
Blood is needed every three seconds to save or improve lives yet only one percent of blood donors are from our community

8. Statistics UK
Black, African and Caribbean people make up just 0.6% of active blood donors despite representing 4.4% of England’s population
4% of our blood donors who have donated blood in the last two years are from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic communities. This is compared to Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic communities representing around 14% of the population.
Recent estimates put the BME population at 20% of the total UK population by 2050.
White
Mixed
South Asian
African & Caribbean
Chinese
Any Other Group

9. Statistics Ethnicity description Number of active donors
Proportion of active donors
2011 Census representation (England only)
Black - Caribbean
4512
0.4%
1.5%
Black – African
2463
0.2%
1.8%
Mixed – W + B Caribbean
4144
0.3%
0.8%
Mixed – W + B African
1286
0.1%
0.6%

10. We need more
blood
donors
From the Jamaican and Caribbean Communities

11. We Need Blood: From the Community For the Community Visit Blood.co.uk
for more information

12. Save a life
- Give blood
please don’t leave it
to someone else

13. NHSBT Facts
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is a joint England and Wales Special Health Authority.
NHSBT s donor line is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week with all calls charged at the standard local rate, even from mobile phones
NHSBT collects 1.8 million units of blood each year from over 23,000 blood donation sessions in more than 3,000 venues
A unit of blood is measured as 470mls (or just under a pint)
There are four main blood groups O, A, B and AB.
Group O is the most common and therefore the most in demand.
A regular supply of blood is vital red cells last 35 days and platelets only 7 days

14. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING
Any Questions?