– At first I was a little shocked. Then I was very sorry Geir Moen-Jensen was refused when he wanted to become a blood donor. He was refused because he stated that he used narcotic drugs 25 years ago. – It cannot possibly be true that the fact that I used illegal drugs 25 years ago should have something to do with my blood today. Moen-Jensen is originally from Bodø, but now lives in Stavanger. Jensen is healthy and even works at the hospital in Stavanger. On the mandatory survey, he was asked about drug addiction. Moen Jensen has always been open that he used narcotic drugs in his youth. He says he was explained that the limit is reached by having used hashish more than five times. WAS NOT ALLOWED TO GIVE BLOOD: He has blood type 0, works at SUS himself and, according to himself, has not touched any kind of drugs for 23-25 years. Photo: Sondre Skjelvik / news Moen-Jensen could not understand that drug use more than two decades ago could have any effect on his blood today. Upset, he went home and googled, and found no rules disqualifying him from donating blood. When he wrote about the experience on Facebook, he found out that others have experienced the same thing. Who can become a blood donor? It only takes half an hour to give blood. The half liter you give can save three lives. If you are healthy and between the ages of 18 and 60, you can register as a blood donor. The blood donor must be healthy. Age at first issue must be at least 18 and no more than 60. For first-time donors over the age of 60, an assessment is made by the blood bank’s doctor, and blood donors over the age of 65 can give blood with annual permission from the blood bank’s doctor. There are requirements for weight, blood pressure, haemoglobin, drug use etc. There is also a requirement that the blood donor is not in a risk group for HIV, hepatitis or other diseases that can be transmitted with blood. This applies, among other things, to people with injecting drug abuse (use of syringes)” In addition to what is stated about the use of syringes, people who have had occasional/one-off use of narcotics that are not injected must have a minimum of one year’s quarantine. These are guidelines contained in the national guide to the Norwegian Directorate of Health. Geographical criteria for exclusion may occur when there is a real risk of infection on the basis of epidemiological conditions in different countries. Country of birth and upbringing, as well as shorter or longer stays in certain countries, can lead to permanent exclusion. Some countries may provide temporary exclusion. The Directorate of Health decided in 2016 that from 1 April 2017 men who have had sex with men and people who have sold sexual services can be accepted as blood donors when at least 12 months have passed since their last sexual contact. Read more in the Directorate of Health’s guide. (source: helsenorge.no and the Directorate of Health) One of them was Halla Karadottir from Bodø. She must have been rejected several years ago. – But it had been at least five to ten years since I had given up drugs. There is a lot of discrimination when you say that you have been addicted to drugs. Halla Karadottir experienced being rejected when she wanted to donate blood at the blood bank. She believes it is because she stated on a form that she had used drugs. Photo: Private photo Moen-Jensen thinks the rejections may be about attitudes. – I suspect it may be a lack of culture. Those who have been young and stupid, we don’t want to have them on the team. Need more blood There are 92,000 people who donate blood in Norway. It is far too little, according to the Red Cross, which is responsible for the recruitment of blood donors in Norway. The blood goes, for example, to leukemia patients, or those who have lost a lot of blood in connection with an accident or operation. It takes 10 minutes and does not hurt. At the last count, there were 92,000 blood donors in Norway. According to previous figures, there were 30,000 donors missing. Photo: Helse Bergen Several hospitals have had a critical shortage of blood this summer. In Bergen, measures had to be put in place to fill the stocks after the reserves this week started to become critically low and the University Hospital of Northern Norway in Tromsø urged blood donors to get in touch. news has also told about Odd Einar Hammervold from Sortland, who was unable to donate blood due to a lack of people at the blood bank. Room for interpretation Senior advisor Elizabeth Salas Andreassen in the Red Cross’ blood program says that the pandemic was clearly a major stop for the recruitment of blood donors. – We are missing thousands, she says. Andreassen therefore believes it is a shame that healthy blood donors are rejected. RED CROSS: Elisabeth Salas Andreassen states that it is very strict when it comes to narcotic substances, and that this is how it should be. Photo: (Private) – There are a lot of young people who try out drugs. If that means they can’t give blood 20 years later, that’s sad and unfortunate. At the same time, blood banks should make a thorough and individual assessment in each individual case. She says the supervisor leaves room for interpretation. – There is a point in the guide that says that if you have used narcotic drugs, it is a risk factor. Especially if you have used syringes. We trust that the blood banks make the professional assessment that is needed. During the revision, Jensen now wants the regulations to be clarified, so that it is not up to interpretation who can and cannot donate blood. The Norwegian Directorate of Health warns that their supervisor is under audit. – And in that connection we will look at the issue raised here, says senior advisor Ingeborg Hagerup-Jenssen. It will still be up to the individual blood bank, also in the future. – In any case, a supervisor is only indicative, and the overall and concrete professional assessment of whether a donor is suitable or whether the quality of the blood given can be questioned must be done in and by the individual blood bank. Geir Moen himself works at Stavanger University Hospital (SUS). With blood type 0, which is the rarest, he was sure he would be a good candidate. Photo: Josef Benoni Ness Tveit / news Got an apology Head of department at the department of immunology and transfusion medicine at SUS, Gunn Kristoffersen, is clear that a mistake has been made in the case of Geir Moen-Jensen. He should not have been rejected. – There has been a communication failure here, she writes in an e-mail to news. When Moen Jensen asked for a meeting with the management of the blood bank, he wanted to raise the issue to get clarity on how the rules work. He then received, among other things, an unreserved apology, but also promises that the hospital would examine its own routines. Stavanger hospital responds to criticism: Head of department at the department of immunology and transfusion medicine at SUS, Gunn Kristoffersen, answers news’s questions via e-mail. 1. – Why was Moen-Jensen told that he was disqualified from donating blood? – There has been a communication breakdown here. Fortunately, we had a good and useful meeting with him afterwards, so that we were able to review his case again. We are also taking the opportunity to review our own routines to ensure that this does not happen again. 2. – Does SUS have its own rules that deviate from the regulations the Directorate of Health operates with? – No, our guidelines are in line with the guidance from the Directorate of Health. 3. – Is what happened due to an individual who practiced his own “rules”, or could it be unwritten rules that the department practices? – See answers to question 1 and question 5. 4. – He says that he has been contacted (and several people have commented on FB) that they have experienced something similar – both at SUS and other hospitals. Is this something you have had reactions to from the audience? E.g. by complaints? – We have not received similar feedback from us in the past. 5. – It is understandable that it can be difficult to decide who can donate blood. How do such quality checks take place? (Individuals who decide then and there, or is it assessed by several people?) – A supervisor will always be guiding in the way that professional judgment will influence the decisions. This particularly applies to cases where the issues are not unambiguous or absolute. It is important to emphasize that patient safety always comes first. A clear rule is therefore that if doubts can be raised about the quality of the blood drawn, it should not be drawn. If the person interviewing blood donors is in doubt, the medical officer is contacted. When registering new blood donors, all blood donor forms are checked and signed by the medical officer in addition to the person conducting the interview. Blood donors are interviewed according to the same form at each blood donation, and the donor is then approved again in practice before each draw. 6. – Where is the time limit between when you have used drugs and when you can donate blood? – When it comes to substance abuse, the following general rule applies which means that you cannot give blood: “belong to a risk group for infection by infectious diseases such as HIV or hepatitis. This applies, among other things, to people with injecting drug abuse (use of syringes)” In addition to what is stated about the use of syringes, people who have had occasional/one-off use of narcotics that are not injected must have a minimum of one year’s quarantine. These are the guidelines contained in the national guide to the Norwegian Directorate of Health, which Helse Stavanger adheres to. (Chapter 5 of the national guide explains various risk situations for infection that lead to permanent or temporary exclusion from donating blood. 7. – Is there a rule (known or unknown to the public) that the limit was supposedly the use of hashish 5 times, as Moen- Jensen claims he experienced at the Blood Bank. – We relate to the national guide, see answer under the previous point. We still believe that this issue is not clear enough in the national guide, and this is something that has also been recorded in connection with the ongoing work to update nationally (which Hdir was doing, but which had to be put on hold when the pandemic came) 8. – Would you like to consider how you practice the rules for who can / cannot donate blood after this incident? – We is always concerned with quality and improvement in our work. If we become aware of areas where we have improvement potential, we continue to work with our routines as we have also done in this case. The aim is that a All blood donors, both new and experienced, should feel welcome, and that they experience a good dialogue with us. This of course also applies in situations where they must temporarily or permanently refrain from donating blood. 9. – Are the current regulations too strict? Does it show Moen-Jensen that it is practiced too much? – See answer under question 7. 10. How important are blood donors like Moen-Jensen, who has blood type 0? – All blood types are important to have in stock in blood banks. There are the same rules for approving donors regardless of blood type. – Fortunately, we had a good and useful meeting with him afterwards, so that we were able to review his case again. We are also taking the opportunity to review our own routines to ensure that this does not happen again, says Kristoffersen. Moen-Jensen is satisfied with the follow-up he received, and thinks it was nice to have a chat and cleaned things up. Now he will finally get to give blood. – We must get over the stigma that people have taken drugs in their youth. When you have been a respected member of society for 20-30 years, such things must not be allowed to hang around.
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Was refused to give blood because of a past with drugs – news Nordland
