Jersey blood stock levels 'unaffected' despite NHS declaring amber alert in England

Jersey's Health Department has reassured islanders there are no immediate issues with blood stock levels and donations.

The government says the island's supplies are 'unaffected' by recent shortages in England, which saw the NHS issue its first-ever amber alert for low blood stocks as supplies became critically low.

Hospitals across England have been told to implement plans to protect their stocks, meaning non-urgent operations requiring blood could be postponed to ensure they are prioritised for patients who need them most.

James Mason, the General Manager for Medical Services within the Health Department, says there are no immediate issues expected:

"The Jersey blood service is the island's own local blood service where we produce most of our blood units.

"Health and Community Services will be monitoring our stock levels and local blood usage very closely and will implement contingency actions if there's a sudden increase in local blood usage or a drop in production in the coming weeks."

Mr Mason went on to thank Jersey's blood donors, saying: "Situations like this highlight just how privileged we are to have our own local blood service."