Unrelated Hematopoietic Stem Cell Donor Recruitment of the Korean Red Cross: 20 Years Experience

Abstract

Background: The National unrelated hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) donor program started in 1994. The Korean Red Cross (KRC) has participated in this program from the start as a recruiting organization. Results of 20 years of donor recruitment were analyzed to make suggestions to manage potential donors more effectively and improve retention rate. Methods: Statistics on registration, deregistration, and donation of potential HSC donors registered in the Korean Network for Organ Sharing (KONOS) registry from 1994 to 2013 were analyzed. For donors recruited by the KRC, gender and age distribution, and reasons for self-withdrawal were also analyzed. Results: As of 2013, a total of 265,307 potential HSC donors have been registered in the KONOS registry, among which 38.8% have been recruited by the KRC. Rate of self-withdrawal from the registry was lower for the KRC than the mean of all recruiting organizations (15.9% vs 21.8%). Reasons for withdrawal were objections by family members (34.9%), medical conditions (28.8%), change of donors' mind (21.7%), and other personal reasons (14.6%). The overall retention rate during the 20 year period for KRC was 63.7% which was higher than that of KONOS (58.1%). Conclusion: The lower self-withdrawal rate and higher retention rate of donors recruited by the KRC are the result of continuous education of donors to maintain their willingness to donate not only during recruitment but also after registration. This study will help to improve the retention rate and manage registered donors more effectively. (Korean J Blood Transfus 2016;27:285-295)

Effect of Educational Program on Knowledge, Attitude, and Willingness of Nursing Students for Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Donation

“…For the past 20 years, only 58.1% of donation registrants from one Korean HSCD registry agreed to donate when they were requested for an actual donation [24]. This agrees with the reports by Denzen et al [20] and Passweg et al [25] that there is a gap between needs and donation of unrelated HSCT in many developing countries.…”

Why We Swab: A library of stories in stem cell donation

“…Donor attrition is a challenge that registries around the world face, and is higher among individuals from diverse racial/ethnic groups 9,10,35,71 . Lack of communication from the registry and higher levels of ambivalence are associated with higher attrition, 9,71 and multiple studies have shown that regular communication with donors can reduce attrition 72,73 . Retention programs incorporating Why We Swab stories alongside other resources 67,74 may improve knowledge and attitudes toward donation, as well as mitigate the demographic and psychosocial factors that affect donor attrition.…”

Physical and Psychological Discomfort Experienced by Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Donors

“…Therefore, the importance of a universal donor recruitment and management program focused on reducing donation-related insecurities through tailored messages and strategies for each ethnic group is clear. According to a report [6], improving the retention rate of Korea's volunteer donors is a cost-effective method, since 1% improvement has an equivalent effect of recruiting 28,000 new volunteer donors. Maintaining a continued increase in the number of volunteer donors while also strengthening efforts to manage retention rates as a means of increasing actual donation are also important in terms of the efficient use of the national budget [7].…”