NHS blood shortage: ‘Perfect storm’ of Russian cyberattack and low supplies prompts Amber Alert for health service

Blood supplies have fallen to unprecedented lows after a “perfect storm” of a cyberattack and unfilled appointments at donor centres.

NHS Blood and Transplant has issued an ‘Amber Alert’ to hospitals asking them to restrict the use of group O blood to essential cases only and to use replacement blood products where clinically safe to do so.

This warning states that the national supply of blood group O negative is only sufficient for 1.6 days, while the national supply of blood of all blood groups is 4.3 days.

Hospitals are still performing emergency surgeries, such as trauma surgery, cancer surgery, transplant surgery and blood transfusions, to treat people with long-term conditions.

It follows a recent cyberattack, in which a gang of Russian hackers called Qilin attacked a major laboratory services provider and demanded a $50 million ransom, affecting hospitals in London.

There are only enough national supplies of O negative blood to last 1.6 days and national supplies of all blood types are 4.3 days.

The company, which was hit by the attack in June, analyses blood, urine and tissue samples for a number of hospitals and GP practices.

The NHS has admitted 814 procedures have been cancelled following the attack, including emergency cancer operations and transplants.

Bosses feared it would take months for a full recovery and that more cancellations were likely as labs can only operate at 10 percent of normal capacity.

However, the blood shortage is also caused by a decrease in blood supply due to the large number of outstanding appointments at donor centres in inner cities.

On average, there are about 50,000 appointments to fill per week. There are still more than 12,000 appointments to fill in donor centers in the next two weeks.

NHS Blood and Transplant, which organises blood donations for the health service, has issued an urgent appeal for all donors to continue to attend their scheduled appointments to avoid shortages amid the global outage at Microsoft last week.

The NHS has admitted that urgent cancer and transplant operations were among the 814 procedures cancelled after the attack.

The group, called Qilin, has claimed responsibility for the June 4 cyberattack on Synnovis and is demanding payment to unlock the affected computers

People with O-negative and O-positive blood are urgently requested to make appointments at donor centers to help rebuild the supply.

O negative, also known as the universal blood type, is the type that can be given to anyone.

It is used in emergencies or when a patient’s blood type is unknown. Air ambulances and emergency vehicles carry O-negative supplies.

Only 8 percent of the population has type O negative, but this form of cancer accounts for approximately 16 percent of hospital admissions.

The NHS is creating an extra 1,000 blood donation appointments each week and is urging people to donate in the coming days and weeks.

“We urgently need more O-group donors to come forward and increase the pool of donors to treat patients who need treatment,” said Dr Jo Farrar, Chief Executive of NHSBT.

She added: ‘Last month we saw an incredible response from donors who answered our call and filled our centres, allowing us to meet the increased demand for blood in June.

‘But after seven weeks, the need for O-negative blood in particular is still great.’

Dr Gail Miflin, Chief Medical Officer at NHSBT, explained that hospitals need up to three blood donations every minute to cope with emergencies, births and routine treatments.

She said: ‘Blood only has a shelf life of 35 days, so the NHS needs blood all year round.

‘There are just under 800,000 regular blood donors, of which 108,000 are O-negative.

‘Ultimately, we need more people to donate blood regularly and come to one of our 25 donor centers.

‘Women can donate once every four months and men once every three months.’

Sir Stephen Powis, NHS National Medical Director England, said: ‘We are seeing increasing demand for blood and shortages of supplies, so it is vital that donors come forward for appointments.

‘Regular blood donors across the country allow hospitals to continue to access blood supplies when needed and prioritize those who need it most.

‘Patients should also continue to come forward for care if they need it – by calling 999 in a life-threatening emergency or alternatively using 111 via the NHS app, online or by phone for other health issues.’