Shanghai marks World Blood Donor Day

The Shanghai Blood Center released a notice on Tuesday, which marked World Blood Donor Day, urging the 350 blood donors in Shanghai who have each donated blood 120 times to apply for the National Voluntary Blood Donation Award.

The center noted that more and more people have been donating blood over the years. Around 380,000 Shanghai residents donated a record 539,300 units of blood last year, a rise of nearly 88 percent from 1998, when blood donation was first introduced to the city.

According to the authorities, blood donation sites have gradually resumed operations since the city lifted the lockdown on June 1. Between June 1 and June 13, more than 1,500 residents had donated 2,642 units of blood and 756 had donated 1,336 units of platelets.

Hou Qi, director of the blood bank at Jiahui International Hospital, said that those who have received the COVID-19 inactivated vaccines can donate blood 48 hours after getting vaccinated. Those who have received other types of COVID-19 vaccines, such as the single-dose adenovirus-based viral vector vaccines, should only donate blood 14 days after receiving their jab.

Those who have been infected with COVID-19 can also donate blood six months after making a full recovery, she added.