A short spade in the crook of your arm and the blood flows.
After a few minutes, the attached plastic bag is filled with half a liter.
The blood goes to a production center, where it is processed and distributed to hospitals.
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Every day in Germany 15,000 blood donations are needed to care for the sick and injured. According to the German Red Cross (DRK), 80 percent of people in this country are dependent on the blood of others once in their lives because they have had an accident or, for example, have cancer. But since the beginning of the corona pandemic, there have been increasing warnings on social media that donating blood is dangerous. This is how the virus is transmitted, they say. Or: A corona vaccination destroys the natural antibodies in the blood, which is why it becomes unusable.
"These are all fake news, absolute nonsense," annoyed Eberhard Weck from the DRK blood donation service in Frankfurt.
The coronavirus is not transmitted through blood donations, nor are donations from vaccinated people problematic.
"I don't know what interest people have in endangering patient care and unsettling possible donors."
Situation particularly critical this summer
On World Blood Donation Day on Monday, the Red Cross reminds once again how urgently blood donations are needed - on June 14, 1868, Karl Landsteiner, the discoverer of blood groups, was born in Austria. This summer, the situation is particularly critical, says Weck. At the beginning of June, the blood reserves in Hesse and Baden-Württemberg halved within a week. Due to the relaxed corona rules and the good weather, the willingness to donate was low. "In addition, the clinics are now catching up on the operations that they had postponed in order to keep intensive care beds free for corona patients." So there are fewer donors when there is an increased need, says Weck. “The gap is widening.” The supply situation has looked very good over the past few months. "When everything was closed in winter,were people either sitting at home or going to donate blood, ”he jokes.
In theory, anyone between the ages of 18 and 73 and weighing more than 50 kilograms can donate. However, other factors, such as blood pressure, blood iron levels, or recent visits abroad, may prevent someone from donating blood. Even taking an aspirin tablet for headaches is problematic because the drug interferes with clotting.
During the pandemic, blood donation providers implemented an appointment reservation system so that no one has to queue. Every potential donor has to fill out a questionnaire, disinfect their hands and receive a fresh mask. Anyone who feels uncomfortable will be sent back home. However, the DRK in Frankfurt does not test for Corona. A test option may attract people who are not entirely healthy and thus put other donors at risk, says Weck. "Although more than 100 people in Hesse and Baden-Württemberg donate blood every week, I am not aware of a case where someone was infected with corona at a blood donation appointment." The donated blood is also not tested for corona.
Those who have recovered have to wait four weeks after the infection has ended before they can donate again. The situation is different with those who have been vaccinated: Those who are well can donate blood the very next day. "There are no restrictions whatsoever with vaccination," says Weck. Contrary to what conspiracy theorists claim, there is also no vaccination protection for recipients who receive blood from a vaccinated donor. There is hardly any way to counter such rumors. “We don't have to do more than publish our own opinion on social media. We can only react, otherwise we run the risk of spreading this fake news. "