Blood shortage emergency: In Manchester, there's…

Blood shortage emergency: In Manchester, there's plenty of donors but not enough staff

Blood supplies have fallen to a critically low level across England, leading to the NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) service to declare its first-ever amber alert. In Greater Manchester, the main challenge is running enough blood donation sessions as the service is hamstrung by chronic staff shortages.

Hospitals have been told to implement plans to protect their stocks, meaning non-urgent operations requiring blood could be postponed to ensure they are prioritised for patients who need them most.

A spokesperson for NHSBT said current overall blood stocks in the NHS stand at 3.1 days but levels of O type blood have fallen to below two days - the threshold for an amber alert.

O negative blood is the universal blood type which can be given to everyone. It is vitally important during emergencies and when the blood type of the recipient is unknown.

Existing O negative and O positive donors are now being asked to book in at blood donor centres to give blood. As blood can only be stored for 35 days, there is a constant need for donations - and a need for specific blood types.

In Greater Manchester, the Manchester Evening News understands that donation centres are being filled by donors, with sessions in Manchester currently mostly fully booked. But efforts are being hamstrung by ‘high workforce absences and high staff turnover’ - pressures which are mirrored across the country.

The lack of staff has led to reduced collection capacity across the country, meaning less blood collection, and an inability to run enough donation sessions, the M.E.N. has learned. Ongoing staff shortage issues have been caused by accelerated turnover and the time it takes to recruit and train new colleagues.

“Rather than a general appeal to the public to give blood, we're asking existing blood donors in Manchester to please keep their appointments if they have them,” a spokesperson for NHSBT told the M.E.N. “If they are an O blood group donor and they don't have an appointment, please call us and we will prioritise them wherever possible. We’d like to thank all our loyal donors and ask that they please keep making appointments over the next few weeks as we look to rebuild stocks.”

Donors are being urged to keep their appointments (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Wendy Clark, interim chief executive of NHSBT, said asking hospitals to limit their use of blood was "not a step we take lightly".

“Patients are our focus. I sincerely apologise to those patients who may see their surgery postponed because of this.

“With the support of hospitals and the measures we are taking to scale up collection capacity, we hope to be able to build stocks back to a more sustainable footing.

“We cannot do this without our amazing donors. If you are O positive or O negative in particular, please make an appointment to give blood as soon as you can. If you already have an appointment, please keep it.”

Hospitals will continue to carry out any urgent, emergency or trauma surgery, cancer surgery and transplant surgery.

Blood supplies have been a challenge since the pandemic because of staff shortages, staff sickness and a change in people's behaviour, which means they are less likely to visit donation centres in towns and cities, according to NHSBT.