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| A man donates blood at Geumcheon-gu Office in Seoul, Feb. 28. The Korean Red Cross said the nation's fast-declining birthrate is causing a blood shortage. /Yonhap |
Low birthrate blamed for worsening blood shortage
By Kim Se-jeong
Korea's fast-shrinking birthrate coupled with a fast-growing elderly population is having an unexpected consequence: a blood shortage.
According to Korean Red Cross Blood Donation Centers Monday, the national blood stock fell to 3.9 days, shorter than five days which is regarded as most desirable.
The blood stock is calculated by dividing the total number of red blood cell samples in stock by 5,236 samples which are consumed every day _ donated blood from an individual is processed into red blood cells, platelets and plasma and stored separately before being shipped to patients in need.
"This trend has been observed for about 10 years," a Red Cross official said on Monday. "Most blood donors are high school students and university students, but their population is on the decline."
According to the latest Red Cross statistics, almost 2.8 million donations were made in 2016, and among them 73 percent came from those 29 or younger.
The biggest decline was seen in North Chungcheong Province where the total number of donors shrank to roughly 89,000 in 2016 from 100,000 in 2014. Aggressive donation campaigns, according to the Red Cross official, boosted the figure to 95,000 last year but that's still far from enough.
The decline in the number of younger donors was more acute.
It fell from 83,000 donations in 2014, or 83 percent, to 72,000, or 75 percent, last year.
"Winter is particularly a challenging time when it comes to blood donation because of the winter break," another Red Cross official was quoted as saying by Yonhap.
The Red Cross said it recently raised the blood shortage warning and is reinforcing its blood supply network and awareness campaigns to boost blood donations.
The local government of North Chungcheong Province also rolled up its sleeves to fill the blood donation gap and raise awareness about the importance of blood donations. "Not enough blood stock can mean a loss of life," a North Chungcheong Province official said. "It's important that people pay more attention to it."
The blood shortage is one of many consequences of a low birthrate. President Moon Jae-in said the low birthrate could be an existential threat to Korea and vowed to put an end to it with meaningful policy measures. Yet, some scholars view that it's too late.
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