The Irish Blood Transfusion Service says most groups in the national blood supply have fallen to under three days of stock.
“There has been a consistently high hospital demand for blood over the summer months and in August we issued the highest amount of blood units to hospitals in over a decade," he said. "High sickness levels, holiday travel combined with the traditional back to school demands, have all had an impact on donor availability throughout the summer and now into autumn".The IBTS is asking regular donors who are texted for upcoming clinics over the coming weeks to make"an extra effort" to attend, especially in Dublin and Cork.
A pre-amber alert letter was issued to all hospitals on September 27th restricting issues of certain blood groups.