Impact of COVID-19 on Blood Donation and Supply: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Study from Saudi Arabia

Background. The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic caused a major impact on blood donation process and supply globally. A lockdown management procedure was launched nationally in Saudi Arabia to manage this global health crisis. The main aim of this study was to determine the effect of COVID-19 lockdown on blood donation services and supply in different regions of Saudi Arabia. Study Design and Methods. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in the blood bank centers of 5 major cities including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Hail, and Jizan in Saudi Arabia. Demographic and blood characteristics were retrieved from the first 6 months of 2019 (January–June) and compared to the same period of 2020. Results. Our findings showed variation in the characteristics of blood donation and supply among the centers surveyed, as some of these centers were adversely affected, while others showed an increase in the availability of blood products during the pandemic. For example, Jeddah’s center was significantly affected by COVID-19 lockdown whereas Hail’s center showed a significant increase in the analyzed characteristics of blood donation services in 2020 compared to 2019. Overall, there was no major difference among the surveyed centers between 2020 and 2019, and this might be due to the effective management of blood supply and transfusion. Discussion. Although blood supply and transfusion practice was slightly affected at various degree among the surveyed centers, the whole process did not show a significant effect on the overall outcome. This is in fact due to the proper preparedness, management of blood requirements and supplies, and efficient response of the surveyed centers in Saudi Arabia.

An Inventory of Deceased Donor Family Care and Contact Between Donor Families and Recipients in 15 European Countries

Families of organ donors play an important role in the deceased organ donation process. The aim of this study was to gain insight into donor family care by creating an inventory of practice in various European countries. A questionnaire about donor family care and contact between donor families and recipients was developed. Representatives of the organ donor professionals of 15 European countries responded (94%). The donor coordinator plays a key role in care for the donor family. All countries provide information about the donation results to the families, although diminished due to privacy laws. Anonymous written contact between donor families and recipients is possible in almost all countries and direct contact in only a few. Remembrance ceremonies exist in most countries. Half of the respondents thought the aftercare could improve. This first inventory shows that differences exist between countries, depending on the organisation of the donation process, the law and the different role of the professionals. Direct contact between donor families and recipients is rarely supported by the donation organisation. To date there has been limited research about the experience of donor family aftercare and we would urge all donation organisations to consider this as a priority area.

The Imminently Dying Donor

As the supply-demand gap for organs for transplantation grows, transplant programs are more accepting of less healthy donors. This chapter focuses on the extreme case: whether and when individuals who have life-limiting conditions (LLC) should be considered for living organ donation. Two types of cases are examined: living donation by individuals with advanced progressive severe debilitating disease for whom there is no ameliorative therapy; and pre-mortem living donation by individuals who are imminently dying or would die of the donation process itself. With appropriate safeguards, some donations by individuals with LLC could be ethical. Pre-mortem donations challenge the dead donor rule (DDR), an ethical norm that prohibits organ procurement until after the individual is dead. The chapter argues that attempts to circumvent the DDR fail to respect the living donor as a patient in his or her own right.

Equity or Equality? Which Approach Brings More Satisfaction in a Kidney-Exchange Chain?

In United States (U.S.), government-funded organizations, such as NLDAC, reimburse travel and subsistence expenses incurred during living-organ donation process. However, in Iran, there is a non-governmental organization called Iranian Kidney Foundation (IKF) that funds the direct and indirect costs of donors through charitable donations and contributions from participants in the exchange program. In this article, for countries outside the U.S. that currently use an equality approach, we propose a potential new compensation-apportionment approach (equitable approach) for kidney-exchange chains and compare it with the currently available system (equality approach) in terms of the apportionment of compensation in a kidney-exchange chain to cover the expenses incurred by the initiating living donor of the chain in the act of donation. To this end, we propose a mechanism to apportion compensation among all participating pairs based on the equity approach by utilizing a prediction model to calculate the probability of graft survival in each transplant operation. These probabilities are then used to define the utility of any transplantation, considering the quality of each pair’s donated and received kidney in the chain. Afterward, the corresponding cost is apportioned by a mechanism based on the normalized differences between the utility of donated and received kidneys for each incompatible pair of the chain. In summary, we demonstrate that by utilizing the equitable approach, there is more fairness and equity in the allocation of resources in organ-procurement systems, which results in more satisfaction among incompatible pairs. Additional future prospective studies are needed to assess this proposed equitable approach for kidney-exchange chains in countries outside the U.S., such as Iran, that currently use an equality approach.

FATORES QUE INFLUENCIAM A FIDELIZAÇÃO DA DOAÇÃO DE SANGUE NO HEMOCENTRO REGIONAL DE MARINGÁ

Blood donation is a subject discussed worldwide, as the transfusion of blood components saves millions of lives. In this sense, the study aimed to analyze the profile of the donor population of a Regional Blood Center and describe the motivational factors for adherence to the blood donation process. To this end, a descriptive observational study was carried out with randomly selected participants. Data were collected from a questionnaire, which included the sociodemographic profile, profession, reason for donation, satisfaction with the service, means of publicizing the donation, among others. In the sample of 201 volunteers, individuals aged under 35 years, remunerated with up to 3 minimum wages, complete high school education level and who performed various activities prevailed. Donors were satisfied with the service, in addition to stating that the lack of encouragement to young people in schools hinders loyalty. In addition, the main motivational factor was the desire to help others, highlighting that 99% of volunteers would donate again. Among the interviewed donors, there was a low adherence to donation by health professionals. Most participants claimed to have knowledge about donation through traditional media. Thus, it can be seen that raising awareness of the process, especially among young people, is necessary to attract volunteers, and that the dissemination of the need for regular donations is important for the loyalty of donors, as well as the provision of good infrastructure and professionals. qualified in donation services.

“Giving the gift of life twice”: Understanding the lived experiences of parent donors and non-donors in pediatric haploidentical hematopoietic cell transplantation

Background: The use of parental donors in pediatric haploidentical hematopoietic cell transplantation is increasing, but research on the psychosocial impact of parental donation is currently limited. We conducted a retrospective, qualitative study to explore parental perceptions of the donation process and the impact of being a donor (or non-donor) on parents’ adjustment and coping with their child’s transplant experience. Methods: Parents/caregivers of children who underwent transplantation with a parental donor or a matched unrelated donor (N = 136) participated in interviews and completed an open-ended questionnaire. Both bereaved parents and parents of survivors were surveyed. Results: Six themes were identified in the data: level of understanding and satisfaction; perception of choice; preparation for donation; perceptions of donation and infusion; benefit-finding; and psychological impact of transplantation. Most parents were satisfied with the information they received and reported a good understanding of transplantation and donation procedures. Parents were divided on perspectives of choice, but their responses reflect that the necessity of saving their child’s life does not allow for choice. They described considerable effort to prepare for transplantation, physically, emotionally, and logistically. Parents acknowledged the psychological impact while identifying positive outcomes that resulted from their child’s transplant journey. Conclusions: Results highlight the unique experiences of parental donors and non-donors from the anticipation phase to the completion of their child’s transplant. Additionally, findings inform supportive care guidance by highlighting the need to assess parental donors’ emotional functioning, provide support post-donation, and conduct bereavement follow-up.

Blood donation narratives on social media

Social media have shown great potential for producing significant changes in behavior and have become the cornerstone for many public health and agency efforts. The nonprofit sector -including blood collection agencies- has adopted social media to aid their cause and reach their goals. However, despite the tremendous impact of social media on society and its promising role for donor recruitment and retention, it has been overlooked in donor research. This study therefore sought to map the social media landscape around blood donation. We showcase an inductive computational method to make sense of vast amounts of dynamic unstructured blood donation text data that exists on social media. With this method, we display what is discussed about blood donation on social media, how these topics are distributed on Facebook and Twitter, and how the prevalence of these topics changes over time. We applied structural topic modeling on 7 years of Dutch blood donation Facebook and Twitter data by the general public. We found 25 topics clustered in 6 distinct clusters. Over time, there is a substantial reduction of messages in which donors announce their donations. Topics that emphasize the positives of blood donation, including donor identity-related topics, are rising. In addition, the findings show a clear social media platform contrast. Topics related to campaigns and controversial policies were found more on Twitter and positive donation topics and topics related to the donation process more on Facebook. To make optimal use of social media for recruitment and retention campaigns and efforts, blood collection agencies should recognize the turbulent environment in which they take place. Monitoring public opinions about blood donation will help blood collection agencies make strategic choices and utilize social media more effectively.

If It Has To Be Done, It Has To Be Done: A Qualitative Study of Clinical Biobank Donation Experience and Motives

Background The success of biobanking is directly linked to the willingness of people to donate their biological materials for research and storage. Ethical issues related to patient consent are an essential component of the current biobanking agenda. The majority of data available are focused on population-based biobanks in western countries. The donation decision process and its ethical applications in clinical populations and populations in countries with other cultural contexts are very limited. This study aimed to evaluate the decision-making experience of the clinical biobank donors, as well as psychological and social motivators and deterrents of this decision and associated ethical risks. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted in two medical institutions, in St Petersburg (Russia), in 2016–2017, among 13 donors of a clinical biobank (pregnant women, cardiac patients, and patients with multiple sclerosis) and three donation organisers — medical specialists involved in recruiting donors for a clinical biobank. Analysis of interview data was based on qualitative content analysis. Results Donors of a clinical biobank express beliefs in the absence of risks associated with the donation. The primary motivators for donating to the biobank were: prosocial, indirect reciprocity (response to or anticipation of an act in kind by a third party), intrinsic motivation (to enhance their self-esteem and satisfying their curiosity about the donation process), and comparability with personal values. A high level of trust in biomedical research and the particular physician can contribute to a favourable decision. The integration of biobank donation decision-making in the process of medical care might prompt patient to donate to biobank without proper consideration. The specific type of therapeutic misconception - the presence of unrealistic hope that donation could provide a direct benefit for a third person in need was discovered. Conclusions Patients recruited to a clinical biobank in Russia have virtually no concerns as to the storage of their biomaterials. The donation decision is mainly motivated by prosocial attitudes and other factors that are similar to the motivating factors of blood donation. The fact of going through inpatient treatment and poor differentiation between donation for other people's benefit and for research purposes can make the process of obtaining consent more ethically problematic.