“I had Covid at the end of December and I have already received my three doses of vaccine, do I have to wait a certain period of time before I can donate my blood? », Pierrick asks us to San Sebastian, near Nantes (Loire Atlantique). It’s a good question. And you’re not the only one wondering. Are you eligible to donate blood? We take stock.
Vaccinated or not vaccinated, can you donate your blood?
It is not necessary to be vaccinated to donate blood. « We welcome all donors able to give, vaccinated and unvaccinated “, answers us the French Blood Establishment (EFS).
It is therefore possible for you to donate your blood after an injection of vaccine against Covid-19, without any adjournment period to be observed. « Vaccination is not a contraindication. The vaccines used in France do not contain live virus capable of replicating and presenting no risk to recipients of blood products. Many other vaccines do not expose blood donation contraindications, such as those against influenza or tetanus », explains the EFS on its website.
What if you are cured or positive for Covid-19?
Here the pattern is different. If you have tested positive for Covid-19 or show signs of infection, “you must wait 14 days after the disappearance of symptoms to donate blood”, tells us the EFS. Similarly, if you are asymptomatic, wait two weeks from the date of the test.
Ditto if you are not vaccinated and if you have been in contact with a case tested positive for the coronavirus, count there also a period of 14 days after your last contact, “unless you have a negative PCR, antigen or self-test”.
Read also: Should you transform your health pass into a vaccination pass?
Can you be asked for your health or vaccination pass?
The answer is no. Neither the vaccination pass, can sanitary pass are required to donate your blood. “We welcome all donors in compliance with barrier gestures, including wearing a mask, which remains compulsory. »
The French Blood Establishment specifies that passes are not compulsory “because collections are neither places of leisure and culture, nor places bringing together vulnerable people, as hospitals, retirement homes or medico-social establishments can be”.
Read also: What is the difference between critical care, intensive care and resuscitation? We answer you
false information
Several false information have circulated on social networks, and in particular on Twitter, about vaccination and blood donation. Saturday January 22, Véronique Genest published: ” Therefore. The vaccinated cannot donate their blood… curious, why? », by relaying another tweet stating: “The Red Cross informs that plasma donations from vax are now refused. » If the French actress’s tweet has since been deleted, it has not failed to be shared by thousands of Internet users.
The French Blood Establishment was quick to react on the platform of the little blue bird. “Hello, this is false, blood donation is an anonymous and voluntary act and it is not necessary to be vaccinated to donate blood. We welcome all donors able to give, vaccinated and unvaccinated. »
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Hello, this is false, blood donation is an anonymous and voluntary act and it is not necessary to be vaccinated to donate blood. We welcome all donors able to give, vaccinated and unvaccinated. Thank you, Ornella for the EFS
– French Blood Establishment (@EFS_dondesang) January 3, 2022
Reserves too low
To date, the number of blood bags is very low. Contacted, the EFS reports that less than 80,000 bags of blood cells are available when 100,000 are needed. “If the Covid-19 does not require collecting more blood than usual, the health crisis has had a major impact on blood collection, which has been in permanent tension for almost two years. » The reserves are therefore very low.
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We are in the red
? https://t.co/pqa4UQ8b7z pic.twitter.com/DfsBhBdomN– French Blood Establishment (@EFS_dondesang) January 25, 2022
The collection offer is disrupted in companies, in high schools and on campuses. These collections “which represent 20 to 30% of donations are largely suspended”.
Added to this are major tensions on the staff. “There are significant tensions on the nursing and doctor professions at the EFS throughout the territory with more than 200 vacant positions. And this aggravation is progressive due to the mobilization of the health professions in the hospital and in the vaccination centres. » Not to mention that attendance at collections at the French Blood Establishment is down.
About one million people are cared for in France each year, thanks to blood donation: “500,000 are transfused and 500,000 are treated with plasma-derived drugs. »
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