Critical need for plasma donations to help Covid-19 patients

Report by ITV Meridian reporter Mary Stanley

An urgent call has been made for people who have recovered from coronavirus to donate plasma.

NHS Blood and Transplant has issued the public appeal to help make sure there is enough plasma to enable a trial and treat patients.

Olly Sohan works in intensive care and has seen it being used first hand.

Donor plasma contains antibodies against the virus which can be transfused into people who are struggling to develop their own immune response.

All of the volunteers at the Southampton Donor Centre have tested positive for Coronavirus or had symptoms and have now recovered.

Reporter Mary Stanley has spent the day at the Southampton Donor Centre and here she explains the difference between donating blood and donating plasma.

More than 1,200 donations of Covid-19 plasma have already been taken across donor centres in the South East.

This includes more than 650 donations at the Oxford Donor Centre and more than 600 donations at Southampton's donor centre.

However NHS Blood and Transplant says it still needs people to come forward to make sure appointments are filled.

There is a particular need for male donors and also female donors who have had a positive test.

Rachel Reeve is a nurse at Southampton General Hospital and her whole family were diagnosed with Covid 19.

Their plasma, which is the liquid part of the blood, contains antibodies their immune system produced while fighting the illness.  These can be transfused into patients whose immune system is struggling to cope. 

Called convalescent plasma, it's being trialled as a treatment for Covid in more than 100 hospitals. 

Potential donors are being prioritised according to who is likely to have higher antibody levels.

Some people will be asked to make a short visit first to give a blood sample, to confirm their antibody levels are high enough for the trial.