Blood donation numbers are very low in Hungary due to the pandemic

On Thursday, the Hungarian government announced strict measures to curb the spreading of the coronavirus in Hungary. It seems that there were some unexpected side effects.

ATV made a report to convey the message of the Hungarian National Blood Transfusion Service. They have said that due to the closing of many schools, the donation events have been cut very short very suddenly. Margit Szatmári, a blood donation coordinator from Red Cross said that the blood supply is in fast decrease. In general, due to the pandemic, fewer people donate blood than before.

Additionally, due to the closing of high schools, moving blood donation events – which are usually popular among teenagers – will stop for at least a month; similar events in workplaces are unfruitful as many people work from home.

The Hungarian National Blood Transfusion Service asks healthy people to continue to donate blood to save three lives with a single donation. ATVs’ report also highlighted that the donations are safe and in correspondence to the current epidemiological measures. The bonus for donating blood has also doubled.

Infostart and MTI also highlighted, that many plasma donating sites are welcoming those who have been recovered from the coronavirus, as the plasma of these people can be beneficial in the future in creating medications that might help cure COVID-19.