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Analysis of Donor Deferral in a Tertiary Health Institution in South-Western Nigeria

Aim: This study aimed at evaluating the deferral pattern among blood donors, in order to draw out lessons that will help canvass for a strengthened policy framework and encourage better outcomes in voluntary blood donation. 
Study Design: This was a retrospective study. 
Place and Duration of Study: All the data were sourced from the central database of donors, as recorded by the Haematology Department of Babcock University Teaching Hospital Ilisan-Remo, Ogun state, Nigeria.  The data used spanned through a period of 5 years, from 2017 to 2021. 
Methodology: A total of 7,362 voluntary and non-remunerated blood donors were included in this study. Their records were accessed and used for the study. Data were analysed using SPSS version 25. The level of statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. 
Results: In this study, half (50.2%) of the entire population of volunteers were between the ages of 18 and 30 years while only 3.7% of them were between 51 and 60 years of age. There were more male volunteers for blood donation compared to the females who only represented 10.8% of the population. 61% of the voluntary donors were accepted for blood donation while 39% were regarded as unfit and hence, deferred. The 3 main reasons for deferral in this study were inadequate hemoglobin (54.7% of deferral cases), unmatched blood group (30.9%) and transfusion transmissible infections (14.4%). Age and gender had a statistically significant (P < 0.05) relationship with the pattern of deferral of the volunteers. 
Conclusion: The high deferral rate observed in this study may reveal an urgent need for a community-based intervention and targeted efforts by necessary agencies to help improve the general health status of possible future voluntary blood donors.