In Cantabria have called for Banco de Sangre y Tejidos de Cantabria and the Hermandad de Donantes de Sangre de Cantabria urgent donations of 0- blood group on 13 August 2026. They named the following donation points: Pabellón 13 of the Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla and a mobile unit at Casa de la Juventud in Torrelavega.
According to the organisers, the mobile unit was in Torrelavega on Thursday from 9.00 to 14.00 and from 16.00 to 20.30. Pabellón 13 at Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla accepts blood donations from Monday to Friday between 9.00 and 20.30. Requirements for donating blood include being in good health, being aged between 18 and 65, and weighing more than 50 kilograms. The mobile unit visits various locations in Cantabria on weekdays.
The appeal is justified by the particular importance of the 0- blood group. It is considered universally suitable for transfusions in emergencies when immediate treatment is needed and the recipient’s blood group cannot be determined. At the same time, people with blood group 0- can receive only 0- blood. A short-term shortage of 0- therefore has a direct impact on capacity in emergency departments and intensive care units, since these blood products cannot readily be replaced with other blood groups.
The organisations note that between 60 and 80 blood donations are needed in Cantabria every day to meet hospitals’ needs, for both planned treatments and emergencies. After standard laboratory testing, donated blood is distributed to the region’s hospitals. The frequently used claim that each blood donation can save three lives is an estimate used by the organisers, referring to the separate use of red blood cells, plasma and platelets; it should be understood as a promotional simplification, not as a reliable measure for individual cases.
The organisers gave no indication of how long the 0- shortage is expected to last. The current appeal should be understood as a short-term measure to safeguard supplies, as well as part of ongoing efforts to mobilise regular donors. All the times and locations given refer to 13 August 2026 and the mobile unit’s weekday schedule in Cantabria.
Editor: Clara Simonichek (Article created with AI assistance).