Blood donation:: knowledge and attitudes of a university population in Chile

Objectives. To evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of students, professors, and other staff at the University of Talca, Chile, regarding voluntary blood donation. Methods. From June to July 2002 a previously-validated survey was administered to 487 individuals in the university community. The survey sought to measure their understanding of blood donation i.e., motivators and reasons for becoming a blood donor and the myths and fears that might deter blood donation. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Results. Only 14% of survey participants had donated blood in the past, and most of these (43.3%) were professors or other academics. Of the participants who were planning to donate blood in the future, students were the majority (88.1%). When the males in the group that was planning to donate were compared to the females, the difference was not statistically significant (90.0% vs. 84.2%, respectively). Of the deterrents to blood donation, 73.4% said the collection instruments might not be sterile. Conclusions. The university population represents a pool of desirable donors; an informative and motivating campaign could successfully convert the 87.3% potential donors into actual volunteer blood donors.