In 2019, a total of 30,533 people donated blood in Estonia, which is almost 800 or 2.5% less than in the previous year. At the same time, the number of blood donations remained at the same level, according to statistics published today by the National Institute for Health Development (NIHD).
The number of blood donors decreased for the sixth year in a row, but in the last two years the decrease has been smaller compared to the previous average decrease of 4% in 2014–2017.
The number of young donors up to the age of 24 decreased the most last year – it was 19% lower compared to 2018. At the same time, the number of donors over the age of 45 increased by 13%. The number of donors aged 25–44 remained in the same range.
A total of 53,445 blood donations was given last year (53,873 in 2018), so one donor donated blood 1.8 times a year on average (the one blood unit is 450 ml). This indicator has slightly increased compared to the previous years, when it was 1.6–1.7, i.e. frequent donors are actively involved in blood donation.
