Lifestyle
NATIONAL UK SPERM BANK HAS JUST NINE REGISTERED DONORS
NEW CAMPAIGN STARTING IN SEPTEMBER
(Source: © Ruby BIRD & Yasmina BEDDOU)
(Source: Youtube)
After admitting it has just nine registered donors, Britain's National Sperm Bank has urged men to prove their manhood and donate sperm with a new campaign. Chief executive Laura Witjens has revealed the new campaign starting in September is a copy of the booming sperm banks of Denmark which market themselves by appealing to male vanity. But it could still take five years before the National Sperm Bank had enough donors.
A change in UK law in 2005, removing anonymity for sperm donors, is thought to have led to a drop in volunteers. Demand has shot up from same-sex couples and older women wanting children. The National Sperm Bank, based at Birmingham Women's Hospital, received a £77,000 grant from the Department of Health to get up and running, but it will now be funded independently of the government.
Getting an approved donor on the books requires a man to come to the clinic twice a week for up to four months, refraining from sex or masturbation for two days before each visit and then be tested again after six months. After the initial campaign, a November advert is planned, asking men to consider giving an “alternative Christmas gift“.
Donors receive just £35 per session but Laura Witjens said better advertising was key, not giving donors more money: “We might get more donors if we paid £50 or £100 per donation. But money corrupts. If you feel you can make £200 a week for four months, you might hide things about your health.“
Donors receive just £35 per session but Laura Witjens said better advertising was key, not giving donors more money: “We might get more donors if we paid £50 or £100 per donation. But money corrupts. If you feel you can make £200 a week for four months, you might hide things about your health.“
Ruby Bird National Uk Birmingham Women Hospital Sperm Bank Registered Nine Donors Campaign Admitting National Sperm Bank Chief Executive Laura Witjens Denmark
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