Choosing the right criteria for donor health and safety

Abstract

Blood transfusion services (BTS) have the responsibility to collect and provide safe blood, and also to deliver sufficient quantity to their health systems. Among the key elements to ensure the safety and adequacy of the blood supply is the collection of blood from voluntary, non‐remunerated blood donors, with an established national system for blood donor selection criteria for all types of donations and a rigorous process to assess the suitability of prospective donors. Blood donors are healthy volunteers who give either whole blood or blood components by apheresis with altruistic motives. However, choosing the right criteria for blood donors’ health and safety is an extremely important issue that could have an impact on donors and blood donation. Therefore, regular assessment of donor suitability should be undertaken in accordance with the national criteria for blood donor selection. These criteria should be consistently applied in every blood donation establishment, on each occasion of donation, to all blood donors. If a truly evidence‐based approach were to be adopted, blood centres would continue to monitor donor reactions to validate the safety of the current approaches or modify them as appropriate. Careful evaluation and selection of blood donors involves proactive and protective measures in assuring donor health and safety and indirectly results in an effective outcome in BTS. This article focuses on donor selection criteria that exist for the purpose of protecting the donor. It consists a review of current international standards and practices.