The fuel shortage is (slowly) beginning to ease: while it remains difficult to find gasoline in certain areas of Île-de-France (particularly in Hauts-de-Seine), “only” a service station out of 5 in the country is currently experiencing supply difficulties.
The gasoline shortage had an unexpected consequence on the health side: in a press release published this Wednesday, October 26, 2022, the French Blood Establishment (EFS) explains that it has affected the attendance of collections.
“These last weeks, […] a significant number of donors have been forced to cancel their appointments for blood donation, for lack of being able to travel. As a result, blood supplies quickly dropped.”
10,000 blood donations a day are needed
Problem: as Hervé Meinrad, director of collection and production at the EFS, points out, “in these times of reduced attendance, the EFS cannot count on its reserves for too long because blood products have a short lifespan. Collect 10,000 donations every day“, especially for “treat patients for whom blood transfusions represent the only therapeutic response (road accident victims in the event of haemorrhage, patients suffering from cancers, genetic diseases, leukemia, etc.).“
To unblock this difficult situation, the French Blood Establishment (EFS) therefore hopes “that the holiday period will be synonymous with time available for donors and/or future donors“.
To find out where to donate and to make an appointment, visit the website www.dondesang.efs.sante.fr or the “Blood Donation” app. The EFS specifies that O groups are particularly sought after.
Source : EFS press release
