Men want blood donation to be easy
According to a recent survey by Blood Service, men who donate blood are motivated not only by their desire to help, but also by the smoothness and ease of blood donation. More men are needed as blood donors.
The years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the reduced mobility of people and the situation in the world in general have affected society such that obtaining a sufficient number of blood donors may become a challenge. Currently, about 3% of Finns within the donor age range donate blood every year.
Patients need the help of donors every day, and patient care needs are constantly changing. More men are needed as blood donors because they are often larger in size than women, and therefore their blood volume is also larger than that of women. Compared to women, men have a much larger iron supply which is more tolerant to blood donation.
“Although the number of male donors has been increasing slightly over the past couple of years, they are still fewer in number than women. Male donors currently account for 43% of all blood donors,” says Liisa Romo, Customer Manager at Blood Service.
The desire to help motivates people to start donating blood
In the summer, Blood Service conducted a survey for men who donate blood to find out more about the views and experiences of male donors regarding blood donation. A total of 758 male donors responded to the survey.
The desire to help patients who need blood products was clearly the most significant reason for starting to donate blood (74% of respondents). The second most important reason (31%) was the belief that donating blood is good for your health, and the third (21%) was the example and encouragement provided by one’s friends and family.
“Many people feel that blood donation has positive health effects. However, there is no conclusive research data on this, as blood donors are generally in good health already when they arrive to donate blood. The health effects are not easy to study,” says Janina Forstén, a physician at the Blood Service.
The overall ease of blood donation makes people come back
The ease of donating blood was the main reason for survey respondents to return to donate blood again (76%). Right after this reason (74%) was the desire to help patients who need blood products. The survey respondents rated blood donation as very easy with a rating of excellent at 9.25 (on a scale of 1 to 10).
“Respondents particularly appreciated the professionalism and kindness of the personnel, as well as the smoothness of blood donation and the functionality of making appointments. These are also assessed to work very well,” says Liisa Romo.
“It seems that especially for first-time donors, donating blood is experienced as being easier than they thought. The ease is also emphasised, along with the desire to help, as an important reason for returning to donate again,” Romo says.
