S’pore Blood Stocks Running Low, Red Cross Appeals For Donors To Contribute

Donors Needed For Most Blood Types As Stocks In Singapore Have Dipped

Blood stocks have run low once again, and the Singapore Red Cross is appealing for donors to step forward.

The organisation requires donations for all blood types but is in urgent need of several in particular.

Interested parties can walk in at any of the blood banks to donate or call their hotline to book an appointment.

Blood donors needed for most blood types

Posting to Facebook on Friday (25 Nov), the Singapore Red Cross urgently called for donations from blood donors of all types.

Their stocks have apparently dipped further, which is why they need assistance from kind souls who can contribute.

A quick look at their website shows that the stockpile for nearly all blood types, as of 30 Nov, has decreased.

Blood types A+, B+ and O+  and AB+ are at low levels, while AB- is at a critical level.

Blood drives available for interested donors

To mitigate the issue, the Singapore Red Cross will be organising community blood drives for interested donors across the country.

Those in the West can head to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, where the blood drive will be held at Tower A, Level 1, on 1 Dec.

For donors closer to central Singapore, there will be another blood drive at the Level 2 Concourse of Far East Plaza on 3 Dec.

Lastly, residents in the Northeast can book their appointments for the blood drive at the Level 1 Multi-Purpose Hall of Punggol 21 Community Club.

All events will run from 10am to 4pm.

Check your eligibility

To be eligible to donate blood, the following criteria must be fulfilled, according to the Red Cross:

• Aged between 16 and 60 (youths aged 16 and 17 will need to bring a signed parental consent form)
• Weigh at least 45kg and be in good health
• No symptoms of infection (e.g. sore throat, cough, runny nose, diarrhoea) for at least one week
• No fever in the last four weeks
• Have a haemoglobin level of at least 12.5g/dL for females, and at least 13.0g/dL for males (a test will be administered at the donation site)

An eligibility quiz can be taken here. Do note that if you’ve travelled in the last four months, you may not be able to donate either.

Once eligible, you can make an appointment to donate blood at the Red Cross website using SingPass.

Alternatively, you may choose to walk into any blood bank or community blood drive.

A list of these walk-in blood donation venues can be found here. The Red Cross can also be contacted at 6220 0183 to check eligibility or opening hours and make an appointment.

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Featured image adapted from Nguyễn Hiệp on Unsplash.