An urgent plea has been made to people in the region who have the rare B negative blood type to donate to ensure blood is there when needed.
NHS Blood and Transplant has called on the 1,400 eligible donors in the Yorkshire and Humber area to step forward, as a combination of a shrinking B negative donor base and recent high demand for B negative blood has left stocks under pressure. The appeal comes as one Yorkshireman marks his 100th donation of blood.
Robert Boocock, 61, from York, became a regular donor in his early 20s. He is one of fewer than 20,000 B negative blood donors in England, as B negative is one of the least common ABO blood types.
When Robert was 21 and working for his uncle, he saw him regularly go to donate blood – and asked why. “I hadn’t realised that when I was quite young, my auntie had an operation that went slightly wrong, and she needed over 20 units of blood to make it through,” he said.
“That got me thinking, that’s 20 people that can only donate once every few months. I thought, I’ve got spare in my body, so why don’t I volunteer?”
The NHS has lost almost 1,000 B negative donors in the last year – a significant drop of five per cent of the B negative donor base. With only 1,903 B negative donors in Yorkshire and the Humber, the NHS is urging residents to book an appointment at one of the three permanent centres in Bradford, Leeds and Sheffield.
By becoming a regular donor, Robert found out that his blood was suitable to be given to newborns. New babies can only be transfused with blood lacking cytomegalovirus (CMV), a mild and common virus that most people catch as a child.
Robert said: “Occasionally when I donate, they say this one will be going to the neonatal ward. That’s quite a nice thought that it’s going straight to a little baby perhaps that doesn’t know they need it.”
The NHS needs younger donors who, like Robert 40 years ago, have a whole lifetime of donating ahead of them. Up to 200,000 new blood donors are needed each year to replace those who stop donating, and Robert described donating blood as a “no-brainer”.
“I liken donating blood to a bank account, basically. Unless you put some in, how could you rely on there being some there, when you may need it?
“I would just say, don’t even worry about it. Yes, you might feel the needle go in, but when they say it’s a scratch, they mean that.
(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
“You do get a regular mini health check as well – iron levels and that sort of thing.” After 73 donations, Robert’s uncle had to stop donating due to health reasons.
However, he encouraged nephew Robert to keep going, and seven years ago Robert achieved his goal of beating his uncle’s number.
“Once I passed that, I thought, I’m not going to stop now! Let’s see how many I can keep going with, until I no longer can. Hopefully that will be for many years to come.”
NHS Blood and Transplant revealed there are 1,400 B negative donors in the region who are eligible to give blood right now as enough time has passed since their last donation. Only two per cent of the population have B negative blood, making it one of the rarest types.
And patients with the B negative blood type can only receive B negative or O negative blood, meaning that low B negative stocks can also place a higher demand on vital emergency supplies of O negative.
Daniel Cooper, assistant director for blood operations at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “We are so grateful to donors like Robert who help ensure that the blood is available when patients and hospitals urgently need it. We hope hearing Robert’s story inspires others to donate, as his uncle inspired him.
“Like Robert did all those years ago, the NHS needs young people to sign up and donate. Young people have a whole lifetime ahead of them to become regular donors and are less likely to be excluded due to health conditions.
“We also urgently need more B negative blood donors to stabilise stocks of this rare blood type. If you don’t know your blood type, you will find out after donating – and you might be one of just 2 per cent of people in this rare blood group.”
Those with B negative blood are also asked to encourage family members to register and book an appointment to donate as they are 30 per cent more likely to have this blood type than the general population. Gerry Gogarty, director of blood supply, said: “B negative donors are immensely important to our lifesaving work but as one of the rarest blood types, it can be a challenge to always collect enough.
“Right now B negative stocks are at risk of running low. With a blood type this rare, just a slight rise in hospital demand or one or two patients suddenly requiring a high number of units, can put significant extra pressure on supplies.”
As well as B negative, there is also an ongoing need for more donors with O negative and RO blood types. Donating a unit of blood takes just an hour and each donation can save up to three lives.
Men can give blood every three months and women every four months. Book an appointment today at blood.co.uk, use the GiveBlood app or call 0300 123 23 23.
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