Croydon residents urged to donate plasma

NHS Blood and Transplant is today launching its first national campaign for people to donate plasma for medicines,  including at the Croydon donor centre.

Plasma donation only restarted in April after a gap of more than 20 years and few people know what plasma donation is.

An NHSBT survey shows only 23 per cent of the public know about it.

This lack of awareness is contributing to a shortfall in donors.

There are 638  active plasma donors at the Croydon plasma donor centre, which is in the Centrale Shopping Centre.

But the centre needed 1,058 donors by now.

Over the next three months, as plasma donation expands,  NHSBT needs about 1,300 more people to start donating plasma in Croydon to get back on target.

Last year, 1,116 people from South London received medicines made from donated plasma, for when  people lack antibodies to fight infections; and when  the body’s immune system is attacking  itself.