Attitudes and practices of health science students regarding blood donation

Background: Blood is fundamental to saving lives and is considered to be the force that sustains our bodies. Objective: To assess the attitudes and practices of health science students regarding blood donation. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was employed to assess the attitudes and practices of health science students regarding blood donation. 453 students (56.7% male) from the four health faculties (Pharmacy, Genetic engineering, Nursing, and Hospital administration) were surveyed between May to July, 2013. Means, percentages, distribution and standard deviation were measured. Furthermore, a t-test was applied to evaluate the change among the means. Results: Male students showed more positive attitude scores regarding blood donation (Mean, 3.91) than female students (Mean, 3.87).Only 66.0% had tested their blood group and a minority (11.3%) had donated blood during their life. Furthermore, a few of them (3.9%) experienced discomfort after donating blood, and the majority of them donated blood voluntarily (60.8%). Conclusions: The outcomes of the current research revealed that the attitudes and practices of the health science students concerning blood donation needed to be enhanced. Therapeutic communication between healthcare professionals and donors should be improved.