The NHS Blood and Transplant service is calling on people in the Lancaster area to help fill available blood donation appointments at the Donor Centre at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary over coming days and weeks to help boost blood stock levels.
There is a particular need for O negative and O positive donors, and by giving an hour of your time, you could save up to three lives.
If you are able to donate, please go online at www.blood.co.uk or call 0300 123 23 23 to book an appointment for the Lancaster Blood Donor Centre.
Please also encourage family and friends to book an appointment. Every minute NHS hospitals in England need three lifesaving blood donations - that’s 3,700 donations a day.
Next week – June 10 to 16 – is national Blood Week so it is a great time to show your support by donating blood.
You can follow and join in the campaign on social media with the hashtags: #GivingType #GiveBlood #NBW24 and mention @Givebloodnhs.
NHS Blood and Transplant says we are a great nation of givers - whether it's making a cup of tea for a colleague or bringing in the Friday office treats. Giving is in our blood and it is blood we need more people to give to save lives.
A blood donation could help someone like Cianna who was diagnosed with sickle cell at just three days old. Cianna, 16, has relied on blood transfusions ever since to try to prevent and relieve the painful symptoms and complications, and help her to lead a normal life. Hospitals need a record 250 donations a day for sickle cell, which is the fastest growing genetic blood disorder in the UK. More donors of Black heritage are also needed to provide ethnically matched blood for people with sickle cell.
While all blood types are needed, the NHS particularly needs O negative donors and O positive donors too. O negative is the type that can be given to anyone which makes it vital in emergencies or when a patient’s blood type is unknown. Air ambulances and emergency response vehicles carry O negative supplies. O positive is the blood type most commonly requested by hospitals, so NHS Blood and Transplant needs to make sure there is a steady supply.
More information is available at NHS Blood Donation.