The future of blood donor policies for Gay and Bisexual Men (GBM) in New Zealand: Where to next?

Abstract

For as long as the blood supply is reliant on voluntary donations, blood donation policies must strike a balance between the inherent risks associated with this and maximising the donor pool and ensuring that the blood is safe. In New Zealand (NZ), gay and bisexual men (GBM) are deferred from donating life-saving blood for three months since their last sexual contact with another man due to the ongoing HIV epidemic. Although GBM as a group are 873 times more likely to be diagnosed with HIV in NZ than heterosexuals, a 3-month deferral is unsustainable as it excludes many low-risk individuals from donating. Unnecessarily conservative policies can be stigmatising and discriminatory towards GBM. When blood deferral policies are perceived to be unfair, they are not likely to be complied with, thus increasing the chance of blood infections entering the blood supply. These risks can be mitigated if NZ’s blood donor policy is more equitable, better understood, and accepted by GBM. However, we lack the current and local evidence needed to inform the decision making processes in creating a more inclusive blood deferral policy. This presentation will be introducing the program of doctoral study which aims to investigate important questions regarding blood donation, focussing on their blood donation understandings, compliance, attitudes, desire to donate, and policy preferences among GBM in NZ. This study will also address the epidemiological and social conundrums we will face in trying to introduce a proportion of GBM who can donate safely into the pool of eligible donors.