Urgent plea for B- blood donors in the West Midlands
The NHS warns supplies of this rare blood type are at risk of running low
NHS Blood and Transplant are appealing for B negative donors in the West Midlands, as bosses are warning supplies of this rare blood type are at risk of running low.
There are 1,197 B negative donors in the region who are eligible to give blood right now - and want as many of these people to come forward 'urgently', as a combination of a shrinking B negative donor base and recent high demand for B negative blood has left stocks under pressure.
Only two percent of the population have B negative blood, making it one of the rarest types.
And patients with the B negative blood type can only receive B negative or O negative blood, meaning that low B negative stocks can also place a higher demand on vital emergency supplies of O negative.
Right now, the number of active B negative donors has reached one of the lowest points of recent years following a loss of 1,000 donors since 2023. Fewer than 20,000 people with B negative blood currently donate regularly.
One of the rarest blood types
Gerry Gogarty, Director of Blood Supply, said: “B negative donors are immensely important to our lifesaving work but as one of the rarest blood types, it can be a challenge to always collect enough.
“Right now B negative stocks are at risk of running low. With a blood type this rare, just a slight rise in hospital demand or one or two patients suddenly requiring a high number of units, can put significant extra pressure on supplies.
“We urgently need existing B negative donors to make an appointment to donate and more people with this blood type to become regular donors and help secure the life-saving supply of blood to patients in the weeks, months and years ahead.
“If you are a B negative donor and can’t find an appointment at a session near you, please call us and we will do what we can to make one available for you. If you have never given blood before and believe you are B negative please sign up and book an appointment today.”
Hospitals across England need more than 5,000 blood donations every day to ensure they have the blood they need to treat patients for a wide variety of reasons.
As well as B negative, there is also an ongoing need for more donors with O negative and RO blood types.
Donating a unit of blood takes just an hour and each donation can save up to three lives.