Abstract

The presented study was conducted with Soroka Medical Center’s Blood Bank in Beer Sheva, raising an issue regarding shortage of blood donations without Jr^-a antigen, which exists in the majority of the population but is rare in some settlements in the Bedouin community in Southern Israel. At present, blood donation rate in this community is negligible. Therefore, the objective was to build a strategic plan to encourage rare blood type donation in the Bedouin community. The methodology included literature review, qualitative interviews, and a quantitative survey. Emphasis of language, religion and culture was taken in to count, as this group is a minority with distinctive characteristics. Interviews (N=15) were conducted with key personnel and Bedouin university students. Data gathered resulted in a survey questionnaire (N=100). The results showed significant lack of awareness regarding the importance of blood donations, motives, and barriers. A segmented strategic plan was built based on the findings, recommending further education on this topic, conservation of patients with non Jr^-a blood type and periodic blood drives. The empirical study presented in this research paves the way for future research and implementation, yet future research should broaden the research to other medical practices and follow-up by action research.