Thai Red Cross Phuket Regional Blood Center

Important information for Foreigners from the Thai Red Cross

The start of tourist season and the associated influx of visitors to Phuket results in an unfortunate trend -- an increase in trauma, accidents and hospitals admissions. Hospitals therefore face an increasing need for more supplies of the vital fluid of life, blood.

• 99.7% of Thais have Rh Positive (Rh +) blood, Rh Negative (Rh-) is rare among Thais (less than 1% in Asians)
• Foreigners have a much higher incidence of Rh Negative blood, about 15%. For every 100 foreign accident patients who need blood, 16 of them will require Rh Negative blood.
• Only around 20 foreigners donate blood regularly each month in Phuket. Due to the limited number of Rh Negative blood collected from the Thai population, the hospitals never have enough stock of this type of blood.
• The Rh Negative blood Register is a resource for Embassies, and hospitals to call when Rh- blood is needed. Calls can then be made to the volunteers on the list to look for an eligible and available donor. Registered donors can be removed from the list at any time.
• If a volunteer wishes to donate regularly the red cells can only be stored for up to 6 weeks, but the platelets last only 5 days. To avoid wasting valuable blood supplies, it may be advised that donors wait for the Red Cross to contact you personally when the demand for blood increases.
• If you know that you're Rh Negative (Rh-), we really do need your details.
• Please remember that if you're Rh Negative (Rh-) and have an accident, you may need the blood of other donors.
• You can't give blood from one person to another unless it's a match. A person with Rh negative blood can't receive Rh positive blood.
• When people donate blood, they usually give one unit, around 500 ml.
• Modern processing techniques mean that a single blood donation, when separated into its components, can help 3 different patients.
• Many accident patients need many units of blood to survive; some as many as 10-15 units.
• Rh negative blood is rare, very rare, not just in Phuket but all over Thailand.
• We can't get Rh negative blood from the Thai population, they don't have it.
• Only a very few foreign people who live in Phuket with Rh negative blood are regular donors.
• When a foreign patient is admitted to hospital and requires Rh negative blood, stocks can be exhausted quickly and urgent calls are then made through the media to obtain more.
• Plasma, contains very important proteins, nutrients and clotting factors which help to prevent and stop bleeding. It is the most versatile component of your blood and donated plasma makes up to 17 life-saving products that help patients with trauma, burns and blood diseases.
• Your platelet donation helps patients with low platelet count or non-functioning platelets who are bleeding or at high risk of bleeding. This may occur during high dose chemotherapy, bone marrow transplantation, major surgery, liver disease or severe trauma. Platelets play a crucial role in ensuring our blood can clot when needed. Platelets also contain growth factors that aid in the repair of damaged body tissue.