Blood donors in <scp>E</scp>ngland and <scp>N</scp>orth <scp>W</scp>ales: demography and patterns of donation

BACKGROUND: As populations in the developed world shift toward an older and more ethnically diverse population, the challenges of recruiting and retaining sufficient donors to secure an adequate, safe supply of blood in the future will increase. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The study population included all first-time (n = 348,740) and repeat (n = 1,805,255) blood donors and their donations (n = 3,854,460) received by NHS Blood and Transplant during 2010 and 2011. Rates of new and repeat donors per 1000 population were estimated using Office for National Statistics 2011 population estimates. Factors associated with new blood donors returning within 6 months were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS: The majority (87.9%) of donors were white British; 5.5% were unknown;…