In the U.S., blood donations rates are lower among African Americans than the general population. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) recently investigated motivators and barriers to donating blood among African Americans in order to increase donations rates and the blood supply, including for people with rare blood types (such as U-negative and Duffy-negative) and people living with sickle cell disease. There were 12 focus groups with African American adults (18-50 years old) who had either donated only once in the past five years or those who had never donated but were receptive to donating in the future. Most participants cited convenience, compensation, and more knowledge about how their blood would be used to help others as motivators to donate blood. Younger participants (18-30 years old, n=34) were more knowledgeable about the donation process, would use social media for more information, and had more trust in the medical community compared to older participants. Younger participants, however, were more concerned about the time needed to donate blood. Older participants (31-50 years, n=33) had more fear and mistrust of the medical community and had questions about how their blood would be used. To diversify the U.S. blood supply, the transfusion community needs to better understand barriers and motivators for all blood donors.
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