The blood supply across Austria is too low, donors are urgently needed: Currently, the full supply of blood products across the country cannot be guaranteed all summer, Red Cross president Gerald Creator warned on Tuesday. Consumption in hospitals is high. The blood donation services would no longer be able to fulfill all orders completely and in a timely manner.
“If stocks of blood products continue to fall, triage in the hospitals is inevitable,” said Mr. Creator. Then only vital interventions or treatments could be performed. “Limiting care for sick and injured people in hospitals is the harsh consequence,” emphasized Creator.
Blood is used every 90 seconds
Blood is needed every 90 seconds in Austria and is used in different ways. Blood can be requested from hospitals around the clock, 365 days a year. About a third of the stored blood is urgently needed, for example after accidents or complications during childbirth.
A large proportion of blood products are used to treat serious diseases – such as cancer therapy, anemia, heart, liver or kidney disease. Since the blood reserves can be maintained for up to 42 days, continuous administration of the rescue medication is required. This is exactly what is extremely difficult at the moment.
In the St. Anna Children’s Hospital, for example, young patients are dependent on blood products. “Because your own blood formation is often severely limited by an oncological disease or the vital therapies it requires,” explains Wolfgang Holter, the hospital’s medical director. The treatment of the children can only be guaranteed with life-saving blood donations.
Similar photo in other countries
The situation is not only alarming in Austria. In many European countries and in the US, Australia and Canada, the blood donation services have launched media appeals because they also face low willingness to donate, the Red Cross reports.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
