Attitudes of Nigerians towards blood donation and blood transfusion.

In an attempt to improve voluntary blood donation at the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (U.C.T.H.) a questionnaire was designed to determine the attitudes of the people towards blood transfusion and blood donation. Of the 246 that responded to the questionnaire 196 (79.7%) would be willing to donate blood freely while 50 (20.3%) would not donate their blood. The most common reason for non-donation and non-acceptance of blood transfusion was religious belief. The results suggest that although most Nigerians are willing to donate blood freely, more positive steps should be taken to educate the population about blood donation and transfusion.