Donating blood

We provide a blood donation service in Jersey that includes managing the donation, storage and transfusion of blood.

By giving blood you'll be helping to increase local blood stocks that could save someone's life. We are always looking for individuals to give blood.

Who can donate blood

You can give blood if you're 17 of over.

However, there are a few instances when giving blood might not be possible.

Our location

We’re located on the ground floor of the General Hospital in the Pathology Department. You go through the set of double doors between the Pharmacy waiting area and the Pathology reception window. The Blood Donor Room is along this corridor on the left hand side.

Blood Donor Service
Pathology Department
General Hospital
St Helier
Jersey
JE1 3QS

Opening hours

We don’t have a drop in service so you need to register with us and have an appointment. Our opening hours for blood donations are:

• Monday 8am to 1pm
• Tuesday 8am to 12.30pm
• Wednesday 8am to 1pm
• Thursday 8am to 1pm
• Friday we are closed

We are also available from 8.30am to 5pm from Monday to Friday for general enquiries. You can email us or phone on +44 (0) 1534 442695. If we’re not available, leave a message and we’ll get back to you.

Register with us

To register as a blood donor, you need to complete our registration form.

Register as a blood donor

A paper version of this form can be posted to you or we can complete it with you at the donor room. 

Your appointment

When you’ve successfully registered with us, we confirm your appointment by post.

Cancelling or rescheduling an appointment

If you can’t attend an appointment, let us know as soon as possible. This means we can offer the appointment to another donor. If we’re unable to take your call, leave a message on our answerphone.   

Tel: +44 (0) 1534 442695 or email us.

Parking

When you’re attending a blood donation appointment, you can park in one of our designated parking spaces in Patriotic Street car park. Details are on the reverse of your appointment slip and must be displayed in your windscreen.

Preparing to give blood

Follow our tips to make your blood donation experience pleasant, safe and straightforward.

Eat

It's vital to eat two to four hours before your donation appointment. This helps to keep your blood sugar levels stable and to keep you feeling well during and after your donation.

Drink

Drink plenty of water on the day you attend to give blood. Also, ensure that you are well hydrated in the days leading up to your donation. This helps to compensate for the fluids lost as almost half of the blood donated is made up of water.

It's essential to avoid alcohol before and after donating as this may affect hydration levels and delay recovery.

Exercise

Avoid vigorous exercise or heavy lifting before and after your donation. Keeping your body rested helps to prevent you feeling dizzy or lightheaded.

Clothing

Wear clothing with loose sleeves. This ensures you're comfortable and allows us easy access to your veins.

What to expect on the day

We guide you through the process, explain what we are doing and answer any questions you have. We give you a donor health check form to complete and ask you some questions.

We take a small blood sample from your finger to test your haemoglobin levels. If the test result is low, we won't take a donation from you and the nurse will tell you what to do next.

Your donation

We label blood bags and sample tubes with unique identification numbers. A tourniquet is placed on your arm to maintain a small amount of pressure.

We examine your arm to find a suitable vein and clean the area with an antiseptic sponge. The nurse offers you a local anaesthetic on the area where the needle is inserted.

An agitator scale weighs and measures your donation and stops when it's complete. You may hear beeping noises from it and these inform us of its progress.

A full donation is 460ml and usually takes between 5 and 10 minutes. We process and test  your blood in the laboratory before it's made available to patients.

After donation

You relax in the post donation area for at least 15 minutes and we provide drinks and biscuits.

It's important to eat later on and to drink plenty of fluids the rest of the day. Keep the dressing on your arm for at least six hours.

It's also important to avoid:

• using the donation arm to carry anything very heavy
• having a hot bath after you have given blood

Feeling unwell

If you feel unwell in any way in the 14 days after your donation, or you believe the blood you donated should not be used for patients, you must let us know. Call us on +44 (0) 1534 442695 during our opening hours.

Any time outside of these hours, call +44 9) 1534 442000 and ask the switchboard operator to bleep the ‘out of hours’ biomedical scientist.

If you feel faint, dizzy, shaky, nauseous, or start sweating or trembling, lie down and rest until you feel better and drink plenty of fluid. It's important you let us know you have felt this way.

Bruising

A bruise may occur at the donation site on your arm. This is usually harmless and will disappear over time. The bruise may look dramatic, especially if it appears away from the donation area. The following advice may help during the first 36 hours after the bruise appears:

• rest – allow time for the bruise to heal. Protect it by avoiding heavy lifting and only gentle movement is recommended
• ice – put the ice under a cloth and apply it to the area
• compression – press the point where the needle was inserted
• elevation – raise your arm above the level of your heart when at rest. If you need pain relief, take paracetamol but avoid aspirin and ibuprofen for the first 24 hours

When giving blood may not be possible

Sometimes it’s not possible for you to give blood, or we ask you to wait for a period of time before donating again.

Reasons you will not be able to give blood

You won't be able to give blood if you:

• have a disease which can be transmitted in blood HIV, hepatitis B or C
• have donated blood in the last three months
• are pregnant, or have had a baby in the last six months
• haven't eaten and drank two to four hours before donating
• have had a blood transfusion since 1980

Reasons you may not be able to give blood

You may not be able to donate blood if:

• you feel unwell on the day or have had any symptoms in the two weeks before donation. These include cough, cold, cold sore, infection, feeling particularly tired
  
• you have returned from travel to the UK in the last 10 days 
  
• you have travelled anywhere outside the UK or Channel Islands. Call us to check if your travel will affect your ability to donate blood
• have or are waiting for any appointments at your GP, hospital or with a healthcare professional. This also includes results, scans, further treatment or surgery
• there have been any changes to your prescribed medication. If you're taking any over the counter medication, this can also affect your donation
• you have had a piercing, tattoo, acupuncture or semi-permanent make-up
• you have visited the dentist, hygienist or are waiting for further dental treatment. Let us know as it may affect your next appointment 

Contact us

You can email us or call on +44 (0) 1534 442695 if you have any questions about your eligibility to give blood.