Loading...
Knowledge, attitudes and practices towards blood donation in Barbados
Atherley, A.E. Taylor, C.G. Whittington, A. Jonker, Cornelis
Atherley, A.E.
Taylor, C.G.
Whittington, A.
Jonker, Cornelis
Publication Date
2016-12
End of Embargo
Supervisor
Rights
© 2016 Wiley. This is the peer-reviewed version of the article, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/tme.12359. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.
Peer-Reviewed
Yes
Open Access status
openAccess
Accepted for publication
Institution
Department
Awarded
Embargo end date
Collections
Additional title
Abstract
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 100% blood should be from voluntary non-remunerated donors (VNRD) yet the majority of blood donations (75%) in Barbados are family/replacement donations. Increasing VNRD is paramount to achieving a safe, reliable blood supply and understanding the population is a strategy suggested by the WHO to inform donor recruitment and education.
To obtain information to devise strategies for a voluntary donor mobilization campaign in Barbados.
Methods: Participants in Barbados (n=429) completed a self-administered questionnaire in 2014. The questionnaire comprised 31 questions including demographics (age, sex, highest educational attainment) and blood donation-related knowledge, attitudes and practices. Analysis of variance, t-test and linear regression were used to analyse data.
Results: Fifty-three per cent (n=219) of participants had previously donated blood; only 23.9% of these had donated within the past two years and almost half were family/replacement donors only. Knowledge deficits included blood donation requirements, deferral factors and maximum yearly donations. Most participants (79%) were willing to donate with more information. Participants with higher educational attainment and previous donors had higher total knowledge and attitude scores (p<0.01). Single, female, and younger participants were less likely to donate blood (p<0.05).
Conclusion: Barbados can likely increase voluntary blood donation rates by addressing knowledge deficits through education campaigns and increasing awareness of the need for donation.
Version
Accepted manuscript
Citation
Atherley A, Taylor C, Whittington A and Jonker C (2016) Knowledge, attitudes and practices towards blood donation in Barbados. Transfusion Medicine. 26(6): 415-421.
Link to publisher’s version
Link to published version
Link to Version of Record
Type
Article