The donation of blood by homosexuals will be allowed after all with certain sensible conditions. The decision is based on recommendations a working group at the Portuguese Blood Institute which have been accepted by the Ministry of Health.
The working group unanimously disapproved with the head of the blood service’s earlier calls for using homosexual behaviour per se as a basis for refusing blood donations and, with conditions, represents the end of a ban that had perturbed campaigners.
In April this year, the president of the Portuguese Institute of Blood, Hélder Trindade, said to the Parliamentary Committee on Health that a man who has had sex with another man will be excluded from making blood donations, adding that the Institute only accepts blood from gay donors if they are in a ‘sexually abstinent’ phase.
Following the statements, the Rumos Novos association for gay Catholics said that it had questioned the head of the Institute on the situation where there is an established male partnership, akin to a heterosexual marriage, pointing out that these people should not just be referred to as 'men who have sex with men.'
"We cannot but regret the latest ideas from the President of the Institute who rejects scientific knowledge and approaches the situation with the most backward and conservative views, like some in the Catholic hierarchy," stated the association in April.
The arguments are now over and sexually active gay men now can be blood donors, subject to temporary periods of suspension of 12 months after their last sexual contact, or six months after a new sexual partner.
The working group called also for the revision of the health questionnaire that donors fill in and the development of a clinical history recording system that will flag up high risk individuals.
The working group seems to have achieved a balance between non-discrimination towards donors and the imperative that any blood transfusion is safe and that "in situations of doubt the precautionary principle of maximum security must apply."
Comments
I hope you never need life saving a blood transfusion.
What is the next step? Northern Portuguese around Porto needing a blood transfusion insisting they will not accept 'Moorish' blood from anywhere further south than Coimbra ?
Odd as this seems we must recognise that race and racial type still defines the Portuguese. And their aspirations. The current election has seen campaign posters in tit for tat questioning in them showing quite obvious north European folks, not traditional Portuguese, on them.
And the Socialist leader is clearly 'lightened' in his campaign publicity. Even whilst the TV clips shows his real skin colour the stock photos of him have been doctored to make him 'more white'.
Consider him now if he makes it to become the new Portuguese Prime Minister. No change likely in developing Portugal as he is a professional politician.
But later at an EU leaders evening out at the theatre, one of the other countries leaders arrives late after the lights have dimmed.
In his / her diary noting 'Trying not disturb the performance I leapt into what I thought was an unoccupied seat and landed in someone's lap. The occupier smiled so I could locate him and introduced himself as the Portuguese PM. A nice chap. I then slid off to the next seat. A good performance.
I must now read up on our countries policy with Portugal before turning in - in case next time we meet he asks me for a loan'