Orin's 60th blood donation
"If you are thinking about donating blood do it, do it, do it ….. It is a wonderful experience knowing that you are directly connecting with someone who urgently needs this lifesaving blood - blood that you can easily give, with nothing in return but the great knowledge that you are saving a life."
Orin Lewis OBE
Orin decided to become a blood donor after seeing the amount of blood that his son, Daniel had to receive. He felt there was no way he couldn’t start donating, as it was a way he could help others in similar need. Consistency was key to making it a regular part of his 12-16 week routine. With the demand always present, Orin put himself in the shoes of those in need of blood donations, in hopes that many others like him will come to see it as a normal part of life. Nerves and fear were not a factor. After seeing how often Daniel had to endure needles for blood tests and transfusions, his own imagined pain seemed almost non-existent when he compared it to what his son had to endure regularly.

What's the craziest conspiracy theory you've heard relating to donation and have you had any bad experiences?
The craziest conspiracy that I have heard on numerous occasions over the last 28 years, is that they get your blood to clone you or tamper with your DNA. Out of all 60 donations I have had only one bad experience. This was when a trainee nurse tried multiple times to draw blood from both arms, but was unable to. Due to their inexperience, it was painful, but after making a complaint, a trained member of staff was able to complete the donation process.
What do you think is the main factor that discourages people from donating blood?
I believe the main factor is, on average, 7–11% of donors are deferred due to low haemoglobin levels, but this rises to 12% for black heritage donors and 25% for female black heritage donors. These deferrals impact donor retention, as those deferred for low haemoglobin are less likely to return.
What changes can the health system make to address mistrust in blood donation?
They need to make the entire blood donation experience less robotic and soulless. In other words, customise the experience to the demographics NHSBT aims to engage. For Black communities, consider incorporating culturally relevant elements such as appropriate music, food, colourful backgrounds and locations that are central to the community. This would show that NHSBT is willing to adapt to its audience, and trust levels will start to slowly rise. Additionally, they should utilise organisations like ACLT in a far bigger way to front the key messaging and host key sessions in the community and beyond.
Each year, a regularly transfused patient with sickle cell will need an average of 100 blood donors to stay alive.


