Should people be paid to donate blood? Yahoo readers have their say
Yahoo UK's poll of the week lets you vote and indicate your strength of feeling on one of the week's hot topics. After the poll closes, we'll publish and analyse the results each Friday, giving readers the chance to see how polarising a topic has become and if their view chimes with other Yahoo UK readers.
The NHS is urging people to come forward as blood donors, saying there is a "critical" need for certain blood types.
On Monday this week, officials said 200,000 more donors were needed in England to maintain the blood supply. Low blood stocks prompted officials to issue an 'amber alert' over supply for hospitals last year and NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) said more must be done to avoid a 'red alert'.
The blood type most in demand is the so-called universal blood type — O negative blood — needed for treatment in emergencies.
There is also a need for more Black donors, who are more likely to have specific blood types that can help treat people with sickle cell disease.
In our poll earlier this week, we asked Yahoo readers if they thought an incentive could attract more donors and posed the question: Should people be paid for donating blood?
Two thirds of respondents to our poll (66%) thought no, blood donations should be voluntary. Some 29% thought yes, people should be paid, while a further 5% were undecided.
We also asked, 'How much would prompt you to donate blood?' The vast majority of respondents (70%) said they were happy to do it for free. Of those who stated an amount, the most popular options were smaller sums, 8% said a value up to £20 would tempt them, while a further 8% cited a payment between £21 and £40. Only 5% said an amount of £100 or more would prompt them to donate.
The poll's Have Your Say feature attracted some passionate comments, with a number of readers citing safety concerns as one of the reasons they didn't agree with payment for donations.
Stephen A from Westbury, said: "I don't think it is a good idea to pay people for blood donations because we could have a similar situation to the blood scandal in the seventies. People who had all sorts of illnesses and drug-related problems sold their blood and created an unnecessary health problem for otherwise healthy individuals."
Richard S from the Highlands agreed, saying: "Payment for blood will attract many short of money because they have taken drugs."
Some readers even said payment would prevent them from donating. "I decided to become a blood donor when my wife was admitted to hospital in the last month of pregnancy," said Ian H from Hinckley. "I have now completed 104 donations … If I was told at that first donation that I would be paid, I would not have continued."
However, some including Lenny T from Kent, said they agreed with payments for donation. "If it means more people will donate blood, it will help hospitals and doctors," they explained.
Others said there were better ways to attract more donors, such as making the opening times and locations of donor centres more convenient, as well as increasing the age limit for giving blood, which currently stands at 65.
"Those who donate do so for the best of reasons, to help others. it is a privilege to be able to help those in desperate need, and I was glad to be able to do so," said HMW from the Scottish Highlands.
"I wish they would take blood from older folk – I'm late 60s – even if they have some health issues. If their iron is okay and you are not on life-saving meds, and are a universal donor – group O – it would help in crisis situations. I would love to be able to do something so useful beyond retirement."
Denise D who lives in Italy said that convenience was an issue. "My daughter tried to give blood, she's donated for a long time. She tried to get another appointment, the first available appointment was three months later and 30 miles away," she said. "There need to be more collection points and nearer city centres."
N Anderson from Worcestershire agreed saying: "Maybe the service should come to local villages, as they used to, asking people to travel to main towns with transport and parking charges is not on."
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