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Blood reserves in Germany run critically short due to corona crisis

Levels of blood reserves in German hospitals are falling to critically low levels due to the coronavirus crisis, impeding efforts of the Red Cross to find donors.

Blood reserves in Germany run critically short due to corona crisis
A woman donates blood in Berlin. Photo: DPA

In the states of Baden-Württemberg and Hessen, the local Red Cross no longer has enough reserves to cover a whole day of hospital operations, according to a report Wednesday from public broadcaster ARD.

Levels are also dangerously low in Berlin, Hamburg, Saxony and Brandenburg. One of the few federal states not hit by the scarcity is Bavaria, which still has blood reserves for over four days.

READ ALSO: 'Masks are in short supply': How coronavirus has hit Germany's frontline workers

“This is the lowest levels of reserves I’ve seen in my career,” Eberhard Weck of the Red Cross in Baden-Württemberg told ARD.

The low levels of blood reserves could be critical if hospitals were hit by a large scale emergency involving significant numbers of patients.

“We would have a big problem then,” the Red Cross’ Stephan Küpper told ARD, adding that local reserves were so low that blood would have to be called in from other parts of the country.

The reason for the shortage is the corona crisis. Although people are as willing as ever to donate blood, opportunities to do so have been limited by the lockdown.

Mobile blood banks, which normally visit universities, schools and companies, have been out of action for weeks due to the fact that universities are closed and most companies have told their employees to work from home. Opportunities to donate at hospitals have also been restricted by the crisis.

The Red Cross is encouraging everyone who can to visit a blood donation centre on the few days when appointments are still possible. The organisation predicts that the shortages could last until the end of the year.

READ ALSO: How people in Germany have been showing their solidarity during the corona crisis

“Everyone who is willing and able needs to donate blood,” Weck told ARD.

Information on booking blood donation appointments across the country is available on the Red Cross’ website via the following link.

 

Member comments

  1. Does anybody have info on whether the Red Cross accepts donations from people cannot speak German? I have tried Charite and Haema, but both have turned me down because I cannot answer their questions in German. Thanks!

  2. A source for a list of the requirements in English for eligibility / ineligibility for being a blood donor would be very useful. Thank you.

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HEALTH

Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

It’s back again: amid sinking temperatures, the incidence of Covid-19 has been slowly rising in Germany. But is this enough to merit worrying about the virus?

Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

More people donning face masks in supermarkets, friends cancelling plans last minute due to getting sick with Covid-19. We might have seen some of those familiar reminders recently that the coronavirus is still around, but could there really be a resurgence of the virus like we experienced during the pandemic years?

According to virologists, the answer seems to be ‘maybe’: since July, the number of people newly infected with Covid-19 has been slowly rising from a very low level.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), nine people per 100,000 inhabitants became newly infected in Germany last week. A year ago, there were only around 270 reported cases.

Various Corona variants are currently on the loose in the country. According to the RKI,  the EG.5 (also called Eris) and XBB.1.16 lines were each detected in the week ending September 3rd with a share of just under 23 percent. 

The highly mutated variant BA.2.86 (Pirola), which is currently under observation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), also arrived in the country this week, according to RKI. 

High number of unreported case

The RKI epidemiologists also warned about a high number of unreported cases since hardly any testing is done. They pointed out that almost half of all registered sewage treatment plants report an increasing viral load in wastewater tests.

The number of hospital admissions has also increased slightly, but are still a far cry from the occupation rate amid the pandemic. Last week it was two per 100,000 inhabitants. In the intensive care units, only 1.2 percent of all beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.

Still, a good three-quarters (76.4 percent) of people in Germany have been vaccinated at least twice and thus have basic immunity, reported RKI. 

Since Monday, doctors’ offices have been vaccinating with the adapted vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer, available to anyone over 12 years old, with a vaccine for small children set to be released the following week and one for those between 5 and 11 to come out October 2nd.

But Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has so far only recommended that people over 60 and those with pre-existing conditions get vaccinated.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Who should get a Covid jab this autumn in Germany?

“The pandemic is over, the virus remains,” he said. “We cannot predict the course of coming waves of corona, but it is clear that older people and people with pre-existing conditions remain at higher risk of becoming severely ill from Covid-19”

The RKI also recommended that people with a cold voluntarily wear a mask. Anyone exhibiting cough, cold, sore throat or other symptoms of a respiratory illness should voluntarily stay at home for three to five days and take regular corona self-tests. 

However, further measures such as contact restrictions are not necessary, he said.

One of many diseases

As of this autumn, Covid-19 could be one of many respiratory diseases. As with influenza, there are no longer absolute infection figures for coronavirus.

Saarbrücken pharmacist Thorsten Lehr told German broadcaster ZDF that self-protection through vaccinations, wearing a mask and getting tested when symptoms appear are prerequisites for surviving the Covid autumn well. 

Only a new, more aggressive mutation could completely turn the game around, he added.

On April 7th of this year, Germany removed the last of its over two-year long coronavirus restrictions, including mask-wearing in some public places.

READ ALSO: German doctors recommend Covid-19 self-tests amid new variant

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