How is S’pore’s blood stock maintained?

Singapore maintains a minimum nine-day stockpile of blood for both daily transfusion needs and emergencies.

- Calista Wong

To sustain this, the Republic relies on voluntary blood donation.

Here is what you need to know about blood donation:

Q What happens when blood supply is low?

A The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) and Singapore Red Cross monitor daily blood stocks and usage patterns, so that preventive action can be taken before the supply falls below the nine-day minimum.

Falling below this level would be cause for concern, said Associate Professor Lina Lim from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine.

Blood donation rates tend to drop when people go on holiday, especially around festive seasons such as Chinese New Year or Christmas.

The year-end period typically sees a drop in blood collection of up to 20 per cent, according to HSA’s website.

Blood type O tends to be in high demand, as it is the universal blood group and is used during emergencies when patients’ blood groups are unknown.

“As half of all patients in Singapore are of the O blood type and can receive only O blood, its supply can fall critically low,’ Prof Lim said.

This happened in the two weeks leading up to the Chinese New Year holiday in January 2024, which saw demand for O blood spike amid lower-than-usual donor turnout.