Male GP turned away by NHS after he refused to say if he was pregnant
Male GP who wanted to donate blood is turned away by Scottish NHS after he refused to say if he was pregnant as he hits out at question designed to ‘placate the gender-brigade’
- Dr Steffen McAndrew, 41, booked appointment at a blood donation centre in Ayr
A male GP was prevented from donating blood to the Scottish NHS because he refused to sign a form saying he was not pregnant.
Dr Steffen McAndrew, 41, booked an appointment at a blood donation centre in Ayr on Tuesday evening.
However, he was told by a nurse he could not continue unless he confirmed he was not carrying a child.
‘I can’t believe they would refuse a donation from a man based on the fact I refused to say if I was pregnant,’ he told the Herald.
‘I just wish basic common sense could be applied in these situations. A man can’t be pregnant.’
Dr Steffen McAndrew, 41, booked an appointment at a blood donation centre in Ayr on Tuesday evening. File photo
Dr McAndrew said he did not want to answer the pregnancy question because he refused to ‘placate the gender brigade’.
‘I can understand those who have suggested, ”just tick the box”, to enable a donation. However it is the principle of the matter.’
The GP said the question on the form had been marked as mandatory, meaning anyone who did not answer it would not be allowed to donate.
As recently as March, the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service was urging people to donate to ensure supplies were not depleted.
A spokeswoman for the SNBTS said it had been asking potential blood donors if they were pregnant since April last year ‘for donor safety’.
‘Giving blood may be harmful for individuals who are pregnant, or who have been pregnant recently,’ she said.
‘We appreciate that for many donors (including some female donors such as post menopausal donors) this question will not be relevant.’
The spokeswoman said the wording of the question had now been changed ‘following donor feedback’.
‘We are planning to update the wording of the question to ”Are you pregnant, or have you been pregnant in the last six months? (If not applicable, please tick no)”.
‘This is likely to be implemented at the next donor health check update due in Summer 2023.’
It follows news health chiefs in England are planning on forking out £100,000 on a scheme to teach NHS staff how to treat pregnant transgender men inclusively.
The initiative could encourage the use of gender-neutral terms such as ‘chest-feeding’ or ‘expressing milk’ instead of breastfeeding.
Other trusts promoting similar inclusivity have automated systems alerting midwives to patients’ preferred pronouns.
The six-figure contract, posted by NHS England, aims to ‘improve inclusion of trans and non-binary people accessing maternity services’.
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