A new inquiry will look into how to scale up supplies in the event of a mass casualty incident
Sweden is looking into ways to strengthen the security of its blood and plasma supply amid growing preparedness concerns, given its proximity to Russia and the war in Ukraine, according to Swedish Health Minister Elisabet Lann (EPP).
Lann launched an investigation into improving Sweden’s blood supply and established a new national blood and plasma organisation with greater state control. Currently, the Swedish system works on a decentralised basis. Its 21 regions have operational responsibility for the blood centres, organise blood donations, and collect blood and plasma. Governmental agencies supervise the transfusion centres.
“The current Swedish system has shortcomings. We don’t have an overview of how much blood there is in the country. Some regions have very good access, with blood donors faithfully coming to give blood every year, and these regions sometimes have more blood than they need, she said, adding that in some regions blood is discarded, while others face recurrent or acute shortages.
Contingency plans
