SNBTS calls national blood shortage 'Amber Alert’

Donors urged to book appointments

Blood stocks in Scotland have dropped to unprecedented low levels due to the shortage of blood donors in Scotland and an increase in use of Group O over the last few months. Recent session disruptions due to staffing and bad weather have also had an impact.

The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) has written to hospitals across Scotland to issue an ‘Amber Alert’ which will come into place at 9am on Tuesday 10 November 2026. This will ask them to ensure Type O blood is only used when essential, and to maximise use of alternatives to transfusion where possible. Stocks have been consistently below target levels for several weeks and Group O blood has fallen to below 2 days on several occasions recently. SNBTS aims to always retain 5 - 7 days supply of all blood groups.

All donors, but particularly O negative and O positive donors, are asked to urgently book and fill appointments across Scotland in the coming days, weeks and months. Appointments are available for booking until the New Year and can be booked on scotblood.co.uk or by calling 0345 90 90 999.

On average, there are around 3,385 appointments to fill each week. Donor Centres in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness have seen a drop in donor numbers for several months, with only 85% of appointments filled on average. This has contributed to the shortage.

This is the first ‘Amber Alert’ to be issued in Scotland and it is an important part of NHS Scotland’s business continuity plan for blood stocks. The alert has initially been issued for an initial period of 4-6 weeks but will be kept under close review. This triggers hospitals to:

• implement their emergency measures to minimise usage;
• move staff to laboratories to vet the use of all O type blood; and
• use patient blood management strategies to minimise use of O type blood.

Hospitals will continue to carry out urgent, emergency or trauma surgery, cancer surgery, transplant surgery and blood transfusions to treat people with long term conditions.  

SNBTS has seen a decline in new donors for several years. Currently, only approximately 2% of the eligible population give blood. This decline in Scotland’s active donor base has led to sustained periods of shortage for one or more blood groups during 2026. To support Scotland’s patients, and correct this concerning stock position, all those who are 17 or over and in general good health are being asked to register as blood donors now. 

Dr Lorna McLintock, Medical Director, SNBTS said:

“To supply hospitals with the 135,000 units of blood they need each year to treat patients, appointments need to be fully booked all year round.

“The winter months can be particularly challenging due to the weather, illness and people enjoying the holiday season. Blood donors are asked to book appointments over the coming days, weeks and months in order to maintain Scotland’s blood stocks."

Appointments can be booked at scotblood.co.uk or by calling 0345 90 90 999.