In a recent article we spoke about Scottish MPs reviewing the ban prohibiting men who have had sex with men from donating blood for 12 months after they have had sex.
The law, as it currently stands, prohibits men from donating blood for a 12 month period if they have had sex with another man, protected or not. However a similar ban does not stop hetero-sexual couple from donating, even if they had unprotected sex.
We are pleased to report that the matter is scheduled to be debated in parliament in Scotland for the first time. The debate won cross table support and was scheduled to be debated on 29/11/16.
The ruling that prohibits homo-sexual men from donating is a leftover from when we did not have the testing facilities that are available to us now. It is thought that the interim period could be brought down to as little as three months.
This would bring it in-line with organ, stem cell and bone-marrow donations. As there is currently a shortage in blood donations nationwide it is hoped that, along with promoting equality, it will also create an increase in donations.
Currently the rules on blood donation are dictated by sexual orientation, rather than sexual practices, which is clearly an outdated way of approaching such a subject. Therefore this could very well be the first step in updating the procedures for blood donation across the board.
Phlebotomy Training Services are one of the leading providers of phlebotomy training in the country. Since we were founded in 2007 we have enabled thousands of people to begin their careers as qualified phlebotomists.
As well as helping people on their first steps into phlebotomy we also provide professional training to people already working within the health care sector in whatever factor, helping them perfect their skills.
To find out more about the services we provide just call us on 01609 751 610.