European Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine

Background: Blood donation is a cornerstone of modern healthcare, ensuring the timely availability of safe blood and blood products. Despite being generally safe, blood donation can occasionally lead to adverse donor reactions, particularly vasovagal responses. Such events, although usually mild, may discourage future donations and affect donor retention. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of preventive measures introduced to reduce donor reaction rates in a tertiary care centre. Methods: A comparative observational study was conducted in the Department of Transfusion Medicine at a tertiary care teaching hospital. Data from two consecutive years were analyzed—2023 (pre-intervention) and 2024 (post-intervention). Preventive interventions implemented in 2024 included pre-donation hydration, enhanced counselling, stringent donor selection, improved phlebotomy technique, and post-donation observation. Donor reactions were categorized per National Blood Transfusion Council (NBTC) guidelines as mild, moderate, severe, or local. Statistical analysis was performed using descriptive and comparative methods, with the Chi-square test applied to assess significance. Results: A total of 41,981 blood donations were evaluated (21,607 in 2023; 20,374 in 2024). The overall donor reaction rate decreased significantly from 1.2% to 0.6% (p < 0.001), representing a 50% relative reduction. Female donors and first-time donors showed higher baseline reaction rates, but both groups exhibited significant improvement post-intervention (females: 4.2%→2.3%; first-time donors: 1.8%→0.9%). Vasovagal reactions were the predominant type, accounting for approximately 90% of all events; no severe reactions were reported in either period. Conclusion: Implementation of structured preventive measures markedly reduced donor reaction rates and improved donor safety. These findings support integrating hydration, counselling, and optimized donor management as standard practice to enhance donor confidence and retention, thereby strengthening the sustainability of voluntary blood donation programs.