There is a shortage of blood in Geneva (french article).
As this results in badly irrigated brains....now I understand the particularities of genevese.

I've wondered where the Swiss give blood since I never see any kind of coordinated effort at collection. She's given like clockwork for years and inspired me to do the same. The blood banks at home make it so easy in some places by having specially equipped buses drop by various parts of the city. The business manager at my last job would arrange appointments and when the bus showed up near our offices she would send out messages to roust up a few more drop-ins. In the summer I would tend not to give because I was busy doing things outdoors like climbing but the blood bank would still call me up religiously. Maybe it's where I live but I don't see anything like that kind of effort here.

I wanted to give blood but they didn't want my horrible British blood

The Americans don't either.

There was a organized blood collection at Unil and EPFL a couple of weeks ago. But the requirements for blood donation were very strict. You were out with (of course) specific diseases but also if you had traveled to certain destinations (asia, even the UK if I remember correctly) or had alternate partners in the last 6-12 months.

I donate blood regularly. Seems easy to me - here in Zurich you just walk in, fill in the forms. They even give you a free meal. We've had several "collecting events" at uni over the last year. I've also seen them organised at Zurich main station and there are vans that go through most medium-sized communities in the country. To me it seems rather well organised! Maybe its not so obvious if you don't speak the language, I don't know...

I've seen a couple of "commercials" in the trams during autumn for blood donations in Zürich. Maybe you just missed the info?

I can't give blood, so I don't pay attention to such information, but I can try to warn the forum in case I see the posters again.

Most of the larger companies in Geneva organise regular calls for blood and group trips to the various collecting stations.
Blood donors got 'free' transfusions if needed as an incentive!

That said, several years ago the powers-that-be suddenly decided that UK blood was off the menu due to a risk of contamination by CJD. Even people that have never lived there, but have spent more than (I think) six months there over a life-time are excluded.
So, they lost a lot of regular donors and are now paying the price.

I doubt that the lack of "British blood" is significant here in any numbers (though happy to be proven wrong).

In the more rural areas (so anything about 5 minutes outside of Zurich), you'd have regular donating days at one of the municipal buildings (firefighters, school gym or the like) organised by the Red Cross or Samaritans - the turn-out is not bad usually, though I don't know what numbers they need to keep up obviously..

I'm sure it's a little bit different in Geneva though..

I knew a lot of people who donated regularly (UK, Irish, Scots, etc.) a hundred, easily. Almost an entire university department's teaching staff in one case. ALL suddenly banned.
Most of them have now moved on from Geneva, but there's still a lot of Brits around here who'd be willing, but are unable..... Geneva's loss though.
They're already mad around here, a bit of mad cow would just spice up the place!

Not bad going there indeed... does make me wonder though, in which countries is UK blood still accepted at all?

I'm pretty certain they still accept it in the UK.

They are very very difficult in Geneva, so it doesn't surprise me. The British blood rule is stupid. My girlfriend used to travel to visit her family in England one month per year when she was young and can't give blood now because her total visits added up to more than 6 months.

In Geneva, filling in the forms and getting the a-OK to give blood is just the beginning of your adventure. I became a donor during the last publicized "blood crisis" they had here, being O+ (universal donor for positive rhesus), but they haven't exactly made it easy. I've only been able to give blood twice (5 visits in total). Admittedly, my iron level is genetically low and I got a bit dizzy the first time I gave blood back in July, but I thought a ferritin test that was well within the norm would put their fears to rest. Instead, every single time I'm there every nurse tells me that I'm looking pale and surely don't eat enough meat and eggs (when my diet is mostly meat). They seem to try to find every technicality then can to get me to not give blood.

I was finally able to give blood before Christmas, and they really got on my nerves because I felt good, in good health, was well-prepared, and still the process was accompanied by the usual and oh-so-scientifically-accurate "you're so pale and thin" analysis from every nurse, who then spent the whole time I was giving blood and 20 minutes after asking if I was OK. (I felt perfectly fine.) I even had to lie to them about having worked out during the previous 48 hours (when I actually had gone swimming the day before, call the police!) They still only took 400ml (instead of the usual 500) and even suggested I do another ferritin test, which almost set me off. We then both mutually decided that I only give blood once per year, which is fine by me. I guess I'll do it every year before Christmas to get my body to put all the food it consumes at X-mas meals to good use. It's just aggravating because I take time off work to go there with the intention of helping out, and the whole time they act like they're doing me a favor.

They must have run out because they were trying to make bloody ManU shirts. In other news - the criteria for giving blood are sooo strict and with "not having travelled to certain countries in the past six months" clashing with the Swiss travel-mania, it's pretty clear that it doesn't add up. Also people have become selfish buggers. I try and get the healthy, non-travelling guys at work to give blood and their response is "why should I do that for someone else". Yup, nice and this despite the Samaritans actually coming to our company, so really zero hassle. Meanwhile, my great uncle climbed up mountains to help people who needed blood back in the days where they linked you up directly as they had no other way of doing it. You got a biiiig steak afterwards.

I'm not allowed to give blood because of all the medication I take and the six month UK rule but if I had to have an operation, I would ask them to take some of my own blood in advance, just in case. You can do that.

Interesting. I've never seen signs around here for it and I usually pay a lot of attention to signs just because I'm an observant sort...

I would love to give blood in Switzerland but I am also a victim of stupid rules. Apparently anyone who goes anywhere in Mexico besides Mexico City can't give blood for something like two years. I think it is ridiculously arbitrary, I visit my brother in Guadalajara once a year, not like it is somewhere out in the middle of Mexico with strange bloodborne tropical diseases...I have a reasonably rare type as well, but hey, more blood for me...

Would people face criminal charges if they lied about recent trips to tropical destinations when registering as a blood donor?

Do the limitations also apply for donating tissues and organs?*


*: No one is interested in british brains anyway

This from the HUG web-site;

Qui peut donner ?





Looks like you're safe to give blood as long as you didn't set foot in the UK between 1980 and 1996. Or have had a blood transfusion since 1980. Which would rule most of 'us' out I think?
Can't find anything about organs, but I'd think the same rules would apply. Their lose really.

The authorities think they can solve the blood supply problem by upping the number of times donors are allowed to give blood to the french level, ie; 6 times a year instead of 4 for men.

Strange, so even a business trip for a couple of days in UK between 1980-1996 will discard you. So I guess I won't give my blood then to the genevese....