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Giving Blood


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Before we moved to France, my wife and I regularly gave blood in the UK. The first time to tried to do this in France we were refused. My wife was very shocked by the refusal, I was more shocked as it meant that we were not entitled to the free lunch. That was 20 years ago.

Tried again in Tolouse 2 years ago. Given the same reason. If you lived in the UK before 1996, you must have eaten beef which was contaminated with "la vache folle". We French do not want to contaminate our stocks of blood (because of course "la vache folle" does not exisit in France). Has anyone given blood here?
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Absolutely true, Lehaut. I looked into it once, as i gave regularly in the UK.

I see that Canada is equally suspicious, even of France!

"Depuis le 31 août 2000, le Canada prend des mesures radicales par crainte de la forme humaine de maladie de la vache folle. Il a décidé d'exclure du don de sang toute personne ayant séjourné six mois ou plus en France entre 1980 et 1996. Ces mesures semblent confirmées : une expérience écossaise aurait prouvé la transmission de la maladie d'un mouton à un autre par transfusion."

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Well I lived in France and only had french tv when all the SIDA things were discovered.

Maybe I have a faulty memory, but I don't think I am far off the mark, and excuse my spelling, hemophiliacs were given infected blood, even though the authorities were warned about contaminated blood. And Fabien was making some major decisions. I do believe that Fabien was taken to court for manslaughter.... but that was it....... nothing happened and it did not feel right at the time.

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In the 1970s and 1980s over 4,500 people with haemophilia and other bleeding disorders were multiply-infected with HIV, Hepatitis B and C and a range of other blood-borne viruses. Over 2,000 people have since died and of the 1,243 people known to be infected with HIV less than 250 are still alive. And that was just the UK! No one was brought to justice over that either.

I understand the the French will accept our organs even if not our blood.
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I think that the whole AIDS thing was probably initially rather different living in France. In the 80's and no access to british tv or radio, we were french news dependant, and I cannot begin to explain how proud the news people and politicians and probably the public seemed to be, a national fierte of french researchers having discovered AIDS, because that is what they were saying.

Yes, we had the scare mongering  on tv and they had phone in programs, but I remember one  in particular , as it had some scientists blushing and embarrassed as worried people called to ask if they did XY and Z in the bedroom, what the risk was.

And the thing is that they were saying that there was a risk of contaminated blood which was ignored. Could have seriously affected me as I lost a lot of blood when I had my son and cursed my ob/gyn for not giving me a transfusion........ good job he did not. 

But Fabien had a lot of power then, and could have done something about it, but did not. And that is what the scandal was.

Frankly, I am SICK TO DEATH, of power mongers that are not held responsible for decisions, where does the 'book stop'?? should never be with the minions and that is what is happening on so many things.

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