Blood Donation: You don’t have to be a doctor to save lives!
Not enough people donate blood as they are often misinformed about the blood donation process or are unaware of its importance. Let’s encourage more people to donate blood.
Statistics on Blood Donation
- 47% of blood donation is from high-income countries, home to less than 19% of the global population.
- Only 10% of people who can give blood do so.
- A single unit of donated blood can save up to 3 lives.
- Every 2 seconds someone needs blood.
- 1 in 4 people will need a blood transfusion at some time in their lives.
How Often Can I Donate?
Female Donors – 16 Weeks or 3 times in a 12 month period Male Donors – 12 weeks or 4 times in a 12 month period.
How Long Does It Take?
The actual donation only takes 8-10 minutes. After donating, you can enjoy a snack and a drink for 10-15 minutes before resuming your day. The entire donation process takes about an hour.
How Much Do I Donate?
The average adult has around 10 pints of blood. Making a blood donation uses about 1 pint, after which your body has an amazing capacity to replace all the cells and fluids that have been lost.
Benefits Of Giving Blood
Red blood cells, platelets, and plasma are among the components that make up blood. Each of these can be used to cure a variety of ailments. Blood is frequently split into its constituent parts or components so that a patient can receive the specific component they require.
- Giving blood can reveal potential health problems
- Giving blood can reduce harmful iron stores
- Giving blood may lower your risk of suffering a heart attack
- Giving blood may reduce your risk of developing cancer
- Giving blood can help your liver stay healthy
- Giving blood can help your mental state
Myths About Blood Donation
Sometimes people are put off giving blood because they don’t understand the process. Clearing up the myths about blood donations can save lives.
| Myths | Facts |
|---|---|
| Giving blood hurts. | It is no more painful than a standard needle prick. The slight little nip is a nice reminder of a good deed. |
| It is possible to contract HIV or infections when donating blood. | Giving blood is completely safe as a sterile, new needle is used for each blood donation and is then carefully discarded. |
| Giving blood is unhealthy. | Only around 350-450 ml of blood is taken from the body during a donation. The body then makes new blood. |
| If you’re on any medication you cannot donate blood. | It all depends on what medications you are taking. In some cases, it will delay donation, but in the majority of cases, it won’t prevent you from donating blood |
| You cannot take part in physical activities after donating blood. | As long as you’re not doing heavy lifting or strenuous workouts, giving blood won’t interfere with your ability to perform everyday tasks. |
| When needed, blood can be manufactured | Even though research is being done on how blood can be manufactured, at the moment it can still only come from healthy human beings. |
| Giving blood is time-consuming. | The entire process is usually completed in under an hour. |
Encouraging People To Donate Blood
Appeal To Their Emotions – Telling people about the difference their donation will make can be a good way to encourage them to donate.
Illustrate A Genuine Need – Inform people that it is difficult to keep blood replenished and that all blood and blood products have a shelf life of 35 days.
Be Enthusiastic and Positive – How you ask can make a big difference and enthusiasm can give people the push they need to donate.
Form A Recruitment Team – Find people who are passionate about blood donation to help you recruit others. Remember that it’s easier for 10 people to recruit 10 donors each than for one person to recruit 100 members.
Ask Appropriately – No one likes to be pressured into something so be mindful of how a potential donor feels and address any concerns they have. Give them the time and space to make a decision about whether they want to give blood or not.
Advertise, Advertise, Advertise – Put promotional posters in common spaces where you live or in your community. Use social media to spread awareness about upcoming blood donation drives.
Which Country Has The Most People Willing To Donate Blood
In a recent Ipsos MORI survey, more than 23,000 respondents from 28 nations were polled on a variety of healthcare issues, including quality of service, access to medical specialists, and waiting times. In addition, respondents were asked if they agreed with the statement “I frequently give blood to aid others.”
Inspirational Quotes
The blood you donate gives someone another chance at life. One day that someone may be a close relative, a friend, a loved one – or even you.” – RedCrossBlood.org
“Excuses never save a life, but blood donation does.” – World Health Organization
