For recipients
Requests are made through your doctor
You cannot request blood directly from this register. A request has to be confirmed by your treating doctor, your blood bank or a pathologist.
That is not bureaucracy for its own sake. The donors on this register are volunteers giving something scarce, and the confirmation step is what lets them trust that every request is real and clinically needed. It also means the people arranging a donation are the people qualified to judge what is actually required.
How to start
- Register on behalf of the person who needs blood. You can do this yourself — you do not need your doctor present.
- Nominate your doctor, blood bank or pathologist. Give us their name and how to reach them.
- We contact them to confirm the request. Nothing is shared with donors until they have.
- Coordinators begin the search once the request is confirmed, and keep you informed.
What we will ask for
The patient’s name and blood group, a contact number, roughly where you are, and your doctor’s details. We ask for as little as we can — enough to find a match and to confirm the request is genuine. We do not ask for diagnosis or treatment details. What we hold and who sees it is set out in the Privacy Notice.
Your privacy
Donors never see your details. They are told that someone nearby needs their blood group; they are not told who you are, where you are being treated, or anything about your condition. Nothing about your request appears on this website.
What we do, and what we do not
- We coordinate introductions between a confirmed request and willing donors.
- We do not hold, test, transport or deliver blood. Collection and transfusion happen through the medical system.
- We do not make clinical decisions, and we cannot advise on treatment.
- We cannot guarantee a match. Donors are volunteers and may decline.
In a medical emergency
If you or someone with you needs blood urgently, contact your hospital or blood bank directly, or call your local emergency number. Rare Blood Connect is a volunteer register, not an emergency service: we cannot arrange urgent transfusions, we do not hold or deliver blood, and this site is not monitored around the clock. We coordinate — your doctor and your blood bank treat.
Questions patients and families ask
How long does it take?
It depends on how many suitable donors are near you and whether they are currently available. Coordinators will tell you honestly where a search stands. If the blood is needed urgently, your hospital and blood bank remain the route to use.
What if my doctor has not heard of Rare Blood Connect?
That is fine and common. Register and nominate them anyway — we will explain who we are when we contact them.
Will donors know who I am?
No. A coordinator sits between you and every donor, and is the only person who sees both sides.