Blood Donors

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Re: Blood Donors

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Re: Blood Donors

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Right side of todays donation and ready for my tea. Session was rammed and running a bit late. My appointment was for 14.30 so I rocked up a 14.25. I was called for my screening at 15.20. I was in the chair at 15.30 and done 10 minutes later.

Booked my next appointment for 14.35 Tuesday 15th November at Burnley Life Church. :smile:

Other available venues were Keighley Victoria Hall, Bingley Arts Centre and Padiham Town Hall but they were into December and not long before Christmas.
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Re: Blood Donors

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I received a text and an email to tell me where my last donation ended up. Manchester team so the first stop from Turf Moor Burnley was the Manchester Blood Centre where it was processed and then passed on to Wythenshawe Hospital. :smile:

In a separate email I was asked to fill in a survey of my last donation experience. I had to mark it down but just on two counts. Firstly, after rocking up on time I had a 50 minute wait before being called for screening. This due to the venue, although large, being oversubscribed for the session. This leads on to the second complaint, no local venue, I had to travel 9.5 miles to the last one. Clinically I marked the experience as faultless.

There was an opportunity to make suggestions for improving the service. I suggested that they reinstate sessions somewhere in Barlick or Earby. Not easy for folk without transport to get to a donor session and you can't really offer lifts to other donors as everyone has to make their own appointments and you could not guarantee attending around the same time. I reckon in this corner of West Craven we have a population of over 20,000 and deserve a local donation venue. I made the following suggestions:

Return to Rolls Royce Sports and Social Club (last venue before the pandemic)
Go back to St Joseph's Community Centre (a previous venue) much modified since it was last used by NHSBT
Barnoldswick Civic Hall.
Earby New Road Community Centre.

I pointed out that all have local parking and disabled access and facilities.
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Re: Blood Donors

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In response to my reply to the donation experience questionnaire. I have received a further email as I asked for a response. This one thanks me for my feedback and outlines the required criteria for donation venues. It also included an email link to the venue procurement section of NHSBT so I have repeated to them the Barlick venues. Rolls and St Joseph's, I have left out the Civic Hall as it does not have direct access to the main hall which the other two venues do. Both of course have been used previously. I pointed out that St Joseph's has been extensively modified since they last used it as venue which must be about 20 years ago. I have already sounded them out and they would be delighted to welcome the service back.

I live in hope of getting a local donation venue back. I pointed out that I rarely see any regular Barlick donors at the remote sessions I have attended (Colne, Skipton, Burnley, Grindleton, Bingley and Padiham. Not surprising really if you don't have your own transport you are pretty well stuffed.
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Re: Blood Donors

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Wasnt there a time when large factories , etc, encouraged their workers to give Blood , perhaps the three main employers in town plus say the football club could get together to arrange additional volunteers - are there posters or postcards in the library/ civic halls as well ?
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Re: Blood Donors

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It's not the lack of volunteers. When the sessions were at Rolls Sports Club there were plenty of workers from the factory donating during the day. All Barlick sessions I have ever attended have been fully booked. The problem is the fact that we don't have any sessions at any venue in Barlick or Earby now. I am trying to get a local venue reinstated with NHSBT. Last sessions in Barlick were before the covid pandemic.
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Re: Blood Donors

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Re: Blood Donors

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Having come closer than I would have wished to being a recipient recently - this caught my eye.

Blood donors

Interestingly Mr Trenholm has already got his non mea culpa in; the Telegraph reports a CQC spokesman as saying ‘NHS Blood & Transplant have made it very clear the amber alert that they have issued is a result of the same staffing shortages that are affecting the rest of the NHS, rather than operational decisions made five years ago.’ That contrasts with some (nameless) health official who is citing a ‘change in donor behaviour’.

No sh*t, Sherlock. Who would have thought that switching from sending the collection facility to the donors to requiring donors to arrive at a place more distant to them at a specified time might, just might, make it too much hassle? It’s the sort of decision that may look attractive in a spreadsheet but won’t work in practice; humans are not pliant cells in a computer program.
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Re: Blood Donors

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Morning David, nice to see you taking gentle exercise in the cloisters.... :biggrin2:
Yes, I heard the doctors talking about this canard and they all agreed that the problem is shortage of staff and planners not listening to the doctors who run the service and the donors who make it possible...
Now where have we heard that accusation against planners before?
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Re: Blood Donors

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Opening paragraph in the article is incorrect.

"ANOTHER day, another NHS problem. This time it’s run out of blood. That’s quite an achievement given that there is an army of volunteers who routinely give blood."

Yes there are quite a few but still only 4% of those who are eligible to donate. It has been at this level for years. The 4% just about manage to keep the stocks ticking over. Notwithstanding the reduction in the venues though. I have mentioned in the past that it is becoming increasingly difficult to attend the reduced numbers of sessions. Not helped in Barlick as the nearest sessions are at Colne Skipton or further afield and all remaining venues quickly get over subscribed. You more or less have to grab the next session as soon as your last one is over.. I'm somewhere in Burnley for my next armful, fine if you have transport and can attend at any time during the day which does not apply to everyone.


I am trying to get a venue re-established in Barlick and have made a couple of suggestions to the powers that be, (NHSBT venue procurement). There was a tick box on the suggestion form for a response which I filled in but I have heard nothing yet. I checked with one of the suggested venue organisers who's details I put forward and they have not had any enquiries.

Lack of stocks is not down too the donors or the staff at the sessions. It is purely the reduction in the number of venues that you can attend which is a managerial problem.
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Re: Blood Donors

Post by Whyperion »

And of course you taking a slot in Burnley removes a slot from someone nearer, so it is hardly a win for the service.
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Re: Blood Donors

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Or the donors.
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Re: Blood Donors

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News today that after a lot of science they have managed to synthesise red blood cells directly from stem cells. You still need the donors to supply the whole blood product though in order to extract the stem cells. The exciting thing is that it makes it possible to select the blood type during the process so it could be a future solution for the supply of the rarer blood types which of course are harder to find within the donor population. The process has been proved but is in it's infancy. Human trials with very small quantities of the synthesised red blood cells are taking place with volunteers.

I do wish that when they report the donor service in the news, they should make a point of saying that only 4% of eligible donors are supplying everyone else. They always just quote the number of folk that regularly donate which of course sounds good but is not representative of the challenge faced by the service.

For my bit of the advancement, I have just received my appointment and medical screening for my next session over in Burnley on the 15th of this month. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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I have just come off the phone with Gerald at NHSBT. I felt the need to ring and check I was OK to donate next Tuesday. I received my third reminder text yesterday which included a link to an eligibility to donate short questionnaire. All OK until I ran into a slightly ambiguous question, ""in the last 4 months have you had your ears, nose, face or body pierced?" strictly speaking I had to answer yes to this as I had a contrasted MRI three weeks ago which includes cannulation which is definitely piercing the skin. Instant fail on this in the short form app but I though I had better check.

The number to ring had a pre recorded message of an amber alert level for blood supplies and the usual messages for what info you can get online etc. I held on for a human and got Gerald. He checked my details and then consulted his oracle. Apparently the question is aimed at folk who have had body piercings done by non medical professionals and does not include proper medical tests. He said I should still tick the box on my medical screening for hospital tests and discuss it at the session. The decision is down to the senior nurse in charge of the session but he says I should be OK. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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My last donation went OK but I did have to have the senior blue nurse sign me off for my yes tick on the medical questionnaire. Medical canullation is considered OK.

I have just received a text to say that my donation went to Wigan Royal Infirmary. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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Re: Blood Donors

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Oh no, just remembered I haven't booked my next session, must have a look.

My earliest date is the 7th February. Padiham Town Hall is the earliest but it's an evening slot. I have booked an afternoon session a month later back at The Burnley Life Church, Tuesday 7th March 2023. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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I cancelled my early March donor session as I know they will not accept me. I would fail on three counts, recent hospital treatment, infection and "foreign" needles. I have to book another chest X-Ray in early April so I will look for a session sometime after then. Not good but can't be helped. :sad:
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Re: Blood Donors

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Received an appeal email for my blood type today so I have booked an appointment for Friday 24th of this month at Padiham Town Hall. I am OK on the medical screening by then for that one. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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Not received my booking letter and medical screening for my donor appointment yet. Unusual as I booked the slot two weeks ago! I will have to fill one in when I get there. Best rock up a bit early.
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Re: Blood Donors

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Had an early tea so that I could set of a bit earlier for my donation appointment. Good job, daft as it might seem it took nearly an hour to get to Padiham Town Hall, tea time rush, lights, temporary lights, roadworks and an accident on North Valley Road in Colne. Anyway got there just before my appointed time but had to fill in the medical questionnaire as I didn't get my appointment letter through the post.

I had to tick yes on a couple of boxes, my hospital visit, chest infection and antibiotics. The other was a change to regular medication. My BP Nurse at the local surgery has put me on the lowest dose of hypertension pills (5mg) as my BP is slightly high, (it's the same as its been for the last 9 years or so) since they have been checking me since I turned 60! Anyway the pills have brought it down a tad as I have been checking it myself.

Ticking the yes boxes of course invoked the Senior Dark Blue Nurse. She was fine with my rather nasty at the time (5 weeks ago) chest infection and the AB's to put me right. However I mentioned that I am due to be reviewed next week by the BP nurse to see if the pills are doing any good, which I know they are. As I am under review she said that taking a unit of blood off me tonight would skew the BP results next week so declined my armful. She did add that once I had been reviewed and even if the dosage was increased but settled on the medication that would be fine for future donations.

So, effectively I have to wait until next week and then look for another appointment.

The "are you fit to donate" online check, (which I did earlier today) doesn't trap that particular fail.
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Re: Blood Donors

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That's unfortunate Ian. Paulette has been struggling to find somewhere with available appointments. Shome managed to find a cancellation at Colne Muni a few weeks ago but nothing yet for her next armful.
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Re: Blood Donors

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The Blood Donor App on my phone is now lit up with a "temporary suspension" banner which says I cant donate before the 24th April. The booking link is already populated with search dates between then and August. First available one is back at Padiham Town Hall on 19th May.

I will wait until I have had my BP review next week before I look for another slot.

My BP this morning was 122/68/66 nowt wrong with that I reckon. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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My BP review was fine, just keep taking the low dose meds. No change to medication so I am fit to donate again. I booked a slot at The Prarie Sports Centre in Burnley for the 4th May. My invitation letter and medical questionarre came this morning. :smile:
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Re: Blood Donors

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As reported elsewhere, small venue with little seating. I will book any alternative venues in future. I do wish the service would come back to Rolls Social Club, plenty of room there and always well subscribed.
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