NHS Blood and Transplant Bromley, England, United Kingdom
Background/Case Studies: Monitoring donor attendance, deferral patterns, and causes are essential for optimizing donor care and maintaining blood supply. This study presents a retrospective analysis of blood donation and deferral data from NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) for 2023 and 2024, with a focus on causes such as low haemoglobin, medical reasons, and failed venous puncture (FVP).
Study
Design/Methods: This retrospective study analysed whole blood donation data from NHSBT donation sessions in 2023–2024. Key metrics included donor attendance, successful donations, deferral rates (stratified by timing and cause, including failed venous puncture(FVP)), and new donor recruitment.
Results/Findings: In 2024, there were 1,737,808 attendances, yielding 1,428,284 successful donations and 280,786 deferrals (deferral rate: 16.2%). In 2023, 1,697,010 individuals attended, with 1,437,496 donations and 232,064 deferrals (13.7%). New donors comprised 19.8% of deferrals in 2024 (n=55,563), compared to 26.3% (n=41,182) in 2023. Most deferrals occurred during the screening stage (94.3% in 2024; 93.7% in 2023).
FVP accounted for 10.0% of deferrals in 2024 (n=28,198) and 11.6% in 2023 (n=26,888), with a female predominance (56.9% in 2024; 57.0% in 2023). Non-FVP deferrals totalled 252,589 (90.0%) in 2024 and 205,176 (88.4%) in 2023. The most common non-FVP cause was low haemoglobin (57.8% in 2024; 53.5% in 2023), followed by medical reasons (20.0% and 21.3%, respectively). Female donors represented 63.5% of non-FVP deferrals in 2024 and 56.2% in 2023.
Conclusions: Deferral rates increased from 2023 to 2024, with a persistent gender disparity in both FVP and non-FVP deferrals. Low haemoglobin continues to be the primary cause of deferral. The data highlight opportunities for targeted strategies to reduce FVP incidence and support donor eligibility, particularly among female donors.
