Reasons for less Black donors can be due to historical betrayals and therefore how public domains are viewed in the same light. An increase in Black donors is required as only 2% of current donors carry the Ro antigens. An increase would allow more treatment for patients suffering with SCD.

The article found Conditional distrust was higher in participants from Black communities. It found that concerns about Windrush were also aligned with the study's result. The finding was summarised as ‘important’ as it shows a clear link between distrust in healthcare and other state domains.

The study used the belief that people from ethnic communities cannot trust NHS staff. This is combined with a general lack of trust in the police and judiciary. It was termed distrust to reflect the viewpoint of differential treatment based on ethnicity and social status.

A study was undertaken. The design of the study used numerous factors and trust was measured on a 1-5 scale; 5 indicating a greater trust in the respective factor. One of these factors was Conditional distrust. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

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Windrush involved Black citizens coming to the UK and being classed as illegal immigrants due to the loss of documents by the state. As a result there was the denial of legal rights. This reduced trust in the state affects other domains mainly when the domains can be seen as linked to the state.

A lack of blood donors from Black backgrounds may be due to distrust in public domains which have been influenced by historical treatment. Unwillingness to donate blood may be solely due to distrust in the NHS or it may be a fusion of distrust in judiciary and police; breeding distrust in the NHS.

Often SCD patients carry the Ro phenotype, the commonality of the phenotype in Black donors makes donations important due to the demand amongst Black populations. Differences in blood composition of SCD patients and White Europeans puts patients at risk of alloimmunisation; deeming them unsuitable.

Ro phenotypes are important for treating patients with sickle cell disease. It’s an inherited disorder of abnormal haemoglobin commonly seen in those of African descent. Those with SCD cannot transport oxygen effectively around the body. Ro phenotypes are often found in those suffering from SCD.

Ro refers to the ‘cDe’ subtype of Rh antigens. This subtype is most commonly found in individuals from Black African/Caribbean backgrounds. The Ro phenotype is rare in White European donors however as there are less donors from Black backgrounds it makes the Ro phenotype rare in transfusion science.