[Satisfaction of paid thrombocyte donors with instrumental thrombocytapheresis].

Objective: The increasing need for single-donor platelet concentrates makes it necessary to motivate platelet donors to donate regularly. The authors examined the contentment of existing donors in order to create a basis for improvements and to raise the attractiveness of donation.

Design: Open empirical data acquisition.

Setting: Institute for Transfusion Medicine at the General Hospital Vienna.

Participants: 211 platelet donors.

Interventions: Interview with a self-developed questionnaire.

Results: Whereas donors rate the work of the staff as being very good, they are less content with the surroundings in the pheresis unit. Younger and higher-educated donors as well as persons who have been donating for less than 5 years show more negative ratings than comparable groups. The financial compensation is important to ensure a high donation frequency.

Conclusions: The attractiveness of donation could be raised by improving certain aspects of donation. In order to ensure a high donation frequency donors should be granted a financial compensation, as otherwise particularly younger donors, who are more likely to be seronegative for antibodies to CMV, would not donate any more or at least not that often.