The New Zealand Blood Service has good news! Restrictions stopping potential donors of blood and plasma who have lived in the UK are about to be lifted.
For many years, people who had lived in the UK, France or the Republic of Ireland between 1 January 1980 and 31 December 1996 were unable to donate blood or plasma in Aotearoa New Zealand. The restrictions came about as a result of an outbreak of mad cow disease in the United Kingdom in the late 1980s and excluded an estimated 10 per cent of Aotearoa's active blood donors from donating.
Earlier this year, the NZ Blood Service made a submission to Medsafe asking to drop the restriction, which has been approved. The change will take effect in the next 6-8 weeks’ time.
Anyone who hasn’t been able to donate as a result of this restriction can now register their interest to donate.
Liza has been a GP for over 15 years, initially in the North of England and now in Gisborne, New Zealand. She's recently joined Pinnacle MHN as GP liaison for Tairāwhiti.
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