On the occasion of the creation of the University Hospital of Guyana (inaugurated on June 16, 2025) bringing together the three hospital centers of Cayenne, Kourou and Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni, the French High Council of Public Health (HCSP) was consulted on the conditions guaranteeing the health security of a possible resumption by the Etablissement français du sang (EFS) of blood collections interrupted in this French territorial community since 2005. The HCSP took into consideration the elements in favor of a resumption of collections as well as the potential obstacles to its reestablishment. The HCSP advice was based on an exhaustive analysis of the infectious risks identified by Public Health France in Guyana, on the availability of screening tests that could be recommended, on national and European legal constraints (Europe does not envisage that a European country could be endemic for malaria) and finally on the problem of rare blood phenotypes that can be at the origin of episodes of anti-erythrocyte alloimmunizations, in particular during severe sickle cell disease which is particularly frequent in certain Guyanese ethnic groups, and which can lead to transfusion impasses.

The HCSP encourages the resumption of blood collections in French Guiana by 2026, subject to compliance with several recommendations, the main ones being:

• the necessary revision of regulatory provisions regarding people living in areas where malaria agents circulate;
• the systematic implementation of anti-malarial serological tests and ultrasensitive molecular biology screening tests for malaria parasites, anti-Trypanosoma cruzi serological tests, and anti-HTLV serological tests on all blood donations;
• the implementation of viral genomic tests targeting certain arboviruses (dengue, chikungunya, Zika, etc.) on a case-by-case basis, depending on the epidemiological situation;
• specific measures in the environment of Q fever outbreaks;
• contacting the HCSP in the event of an emerging epidemiological risk that could affect transfusion safety.

If possible, it is recommended to direct collections towards populations of African or Amerindian descent with the aim of identifying donors carrying "rare" erythrocyte groups that are underrepresented in other parts of the national territory. Finally, the HCSP suggests that, in addition to implementing the usual hemovigilance measures to identify any adverse event in the transfusion chain, an annual reassessment of this new strategy will be useful to analyze its benefits and limitations.