Blood donor level ‘safe’ in Scotland and nearly 20% higher than in England – another wee difference that makes a difference?

Professor John Robertson OBA

Headlining on BBC Breakfast this morning, the above, and on their website:

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), the body that oversees England’s blood donation system, said the number of regular donors needs to rise from around 800,000 to more than one million to maintain a safe and reliable supply.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98p0pj7dypo

What’s the situation in Scotland? BBC Scotland had a worrying (for their elderly and vulnerable viewers) report of a 10% reduction in the number of donors but also that levels were currently safe with 95 000 active donors.

You know where I’m going. With 10 times the population you might expect England to have 950 000 active donors (almost their current target) but they only have 800 000.

So, Scotland thus has, per head, proportionally, pro rata, 18.75% more donors. This is a big difference and I’m not the only one commenting on how different Scotland is becoming. Prof Danny Dorling of Oxford University has been talking about this for some time:

This is another of those wee differences that put together mean Scotland is different and getting more so. Here are some others:

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