Severely Low Blood Supply... The 'Blood-Drying' Blood Donation Center

Blood Supply Lasts Only 3.3 Days
Blood Donations Down 11% from Last Year
Significant Drop Due to COVID Concerns
Only 2 Visitors in Several Hours

On the 16th, at the Blood Donation House Gwanghwamun Center located in Jongno-gu, Seoul, as the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases reached 600,000, there were no blood donors, and the staff were waiting.
Photo by Oh Gyumin moh011@

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Gyumin] "(Blood donation) is a matter of life and death for critically ill patients who need transfusions. They wait without even knowing why they cannot receive transfusions themselves."

On the 16th, Lee Jeomhwa, the head of the Blood Donation Center in Gwanghwamun, located in Jongno-gu, Seoul, had a somber expression. He tidied the blankets on the empty beds again and waited for people to come to donate blood, but only two citizens visited over several hours. He said, "Except for the blood reserved for war preparedness, there is virtually no blood left."

According to statistics from the Blood Management Headquarters of the Korean Red Cross, as of the 16th, the blood supply is at 3.3 days. The Blood Management Headquarters explained that the blood supply, which was 7.2 days at the beginning of the year, has dropped by more than 50% in just over a month due to the surge in COVID-19 cases. Meanwhile, the number of blood donations this year was 427,165 as of the 15th, a decrease of 52,516 (10.9%) compared to the same period last year.

The center head said, "The number of people coming to donate has clearly decreased due to the high number of confirmed cases and concerns about infection," adding, "The regular donors (repeat donors) at the Gwanghwamun Center have also decreased from 22 to 4." He said, "Among the regular donors, many call to say they want to donate after recovery. When we inform them that they must wait at least 35 days before donating, they respond with disappointment, which pains me."

Group blood donations, which account for most of the blood supply (involving soldiers, students, etc.), have also stopped abruptly. The center head appealed, "If we calculate based on an average of 400,000 daily COVID-19 cases and the premise that blood donation is possible only after at least 4 weeks, 14 million potential donors disappear. This is truly a nationwide crisis now. The suffering is being passed on to critically ill patients, including those with cancer."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.