Perception of blood donation among employees of healthcare organizations during COVID-19 pandemic: A national multicenter cross-sectional study

Background Maintaining a safe and adequate blood supply during a crisis is a major challenge facing blood banks around the world. With the recent global COVID-19 crisis and the enforced stay at home lockdown, access to blood donors was limited. Since employees of healthcare facilities may act as potential blood donors, their perception of blood donation and their willingness to donate during the pandemic period is important to be assessed.Study Design and Method A national cross-sectional study at six centers in Saudi Arabia was conducted using an online-based questionnaire that was distributed to all healthcare employees in these facilities between June and August 2020.Results Among the total of 1664 participants, 63.2% (n = 1051) did not donate blood during the last 2 years. However, 53% (n = 882) of participants reported they are likely to donate blood during the COVID-19 crisis. Furthermore, 85% (n = 1424) did not donate blood during the current pandemic, with the biggest worries of getting the COVID-19 infection in the donor center. The main concerns of participants were about adherence to physical distancing requirements and the safety of the donation procedure. The majority of health care participants (88.2%) support implementing a hospital policy for a voluntary blood donation by employees during crises.Conclusion Recruitment of more blood donors among health care employees is a feasible solution to improve the blood supply during a crisis. This should be based on efforts throughout the year including regular awareness campaigns and effective communication.

Automated summary

Maintaining a safe and adequate blood supply during a crisis is a major challenge. A study in Saudi Arabia found that although a majority of healthcare employees did not donate blood in the past two years, a significant percentage expressed their willingness to donate during the COVID-19 crisis. Concerns about the risk of infection and safety during the donation process were the main reasons for not donating.