ShareThe delivery of blood to London hospitals may be impeded by Olympic transport restrictions
The delivery of blood to London hospitals may be impeded by Olympic transport restrictions, a UK delivery firm has warned.
TNT Express has emphasized that increased congestion and restrictions on access, parking and delivery times could cause delays. Couriers like TNT supply a third of the 11 700 units of red blood cells sent to 41 hospitals in the London area every week. The blue-light vehicles used for emergency transportation of organs will be allowed to use the 48 km of Games Lanes in London reserved for athletes, officials, sponsors, VIPs and media during the Olympics.
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) - which is responsible for the supply of blood in England and northern Wales, organs and tissues in the UK - said it was considering ways of mitigating risks posed by the additional Olympics congestion. "This includes moving routine deliveries to night-time hours, working with hospitals to try and reduce the demand for deliveries and ensuring their vehicles have unrestricted access when making emergency journeys". NHSBT also fears blood stocks may be hit by a lower level of blood donations during the major events this summer.
Approximately 40 organs are transported around London each week. Even though the NHS uses its own specialized cars to deliver most of its blood supplies, couriers like TNT are used for 35% of red blood cell deliveries. TNT delivers around 7800 organs and 50 000 blood packages for the NHSBT each year.
TNT Express has emphasized that increased congestion and restrictions on access, parking and delivery times could cause delays. Couriers like TNT supply a third of the 11 700 units of red blood cells sent to 41 hospitals in the London area every week. The blue-light vehicles used for emergency transportation of organs will be allowed to use the 48 km of Games Lanes in London reserved for athletes, officials, sponsors, VIPs and media during the Olympics.
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) - which is responsible for the supply of blood in England and northern Wales, organs and tissues in the UK - said it was considering ways of mitigating risks posed by the additional Olympics congestion. "This includes moving routine deliveries to night-time hours, working with hospitals to try and reduce the demand for deliveries and ensuring their vehicles have unrestricted access when making emergency journeys". NHSBT also fears blood stocks may be hit by a lower level of blood donations during the major events this summer.
Approximately 40 organs are transported around London each week. Even though the NHS uses its own specialized cars to deliver most of its blood supplies, couriers like TNT are used for 35% of red blood cell deliveries. TNT delivers around 7800 organs and 50 000 blood packages for the NHSBT each year.