Health system is in search for volunteer blood donors

In the wake of the February 28 railway disaster at Tempe that killed 57 people, thousands of people volunteered to donate blood. The amount collected within a week was almost double the usual intake, the National Blood Donation Center (EKEA) announced. Given that there was relatively little need for blood as a result of the accident, the donations have covered the needs for the next few weeks.

The surge notwithstanding, there are far too few volunteer donors in Greece, although the number has been rising, doctors and officials say. There are also wide regional disparities as well as disparities between hospitals and there is a lack of coordination that would ensure uninterrupted supply across the health system, they say.

In 2022, 523,230 blood units were collected and another 20,000 were imported through the Red Cross.