What was claimed
Anyone in Manchester with blood group O negative should go to the Royal Infirmary as they have run out of blood.
Our verdict
This is not true.
The NHS is not asking people with type O negative blood to go to donate at Manchester Royal Infirmary
15 April 2020
A post asking people in Manchester with O negative blood to go to the Royal Infirmary as they have run out of blood has been shared across social media.
The social media accounts for NHS Blood and Transplant have stated that the claim is not true and could worry patients.
Versions of the post have been circulating on social media since just after the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017, and they regularly reappear.
The service does put out appeals for certain blood types when stocks do get low—this may be via telephone calls or emails to existing donors, or social media posts. They also share their bloodstock levels daily. At the time of writing O negative blood—which can be given to patients of any blood type and is thus considered vital—had 10 days of stock left. The NHS says it aims to have at least six days stock of any blood type.
Despite the ongoing pandemic, people are still being encouraged to donate blood if they can. Leaving the house to donate blood is considered essential travel.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because this is not an official appeal from NHS Blood and Transplant.