- Australia has one of the safest blood supply systems in the world.
- You can donate whole blood every 12 weeks.
- O negative blood is universal and can be given to anyone.
- Plasma and platelet donations can be made every 2 weeks.
- Every whole blood donation can save 3 lives.
- 1 in 3 people will need blood. Only 1 in 30 gives blood.
- Australia needs over 27,000 blood donations every week.
- 470mL of blood is collected when you give whole blood.
- Within 24-48 hours of giving blood, your blood volume is completely restored.
- Giving blood only takes about an hour.
- Plasma donations can be used to make 17 different products.
- Red blood cells have a shelf life of 42 days.
- 34% of donated blood goes towards helping cancer patients.
- You can start giving blood at 16.
- The blood service has been collecting blood for over 80 years.
- Many donor centres have a courtesy bus.
- You can donate double platelets – helping twice as many people.
- Platelets have a shelf life of only 5 days.
Corporate Governance
The Blood Service has a professional Board comprising of nine non-executive members and one executive member, the Chief Executive. The Chief Executive and Board Secretary report to the Board. All Board members are selected on the basis of their skills and experience, according to pre-determined criteria to ensure the Board as a whole meets the needs of the Blood Service and its stakeholders. Members are generally appointed for a three-year term, but may be eligible for reappointment.
The responsibilities of the Board are to oversee the strategic direction, financial and operational activities and risk management of the organisation.
The Board meets monthly.
The governance priorities of the Board are to:
- Maintain financial viability
- Comply with all relevant laws and regulations
- Communicate in an open and transparent manner on Blood Service performance to the wider community.
- Engage with stakeholders on the Blood Service's strategic intent
- Continually monitor performance across all areas of the organisation by establishing appropriate objectives and key performance indicators, carrying out regular audits and acting on complaints, and
- Reflecting on our performance and learning from it.
The Board members are:
- Mr Graham Addison
- Ms Sandy Chakravarty
- Dr Anne Fletcher
- Dr David Graham
- Hon Dr David Hamill (Chairman)
- Ms Kelly Jones
- Associate Professor Larry McNicol
- Mr Ross Pinney
- Mr Jim Swinden
- Ms Jennifer Williams (Chief Executive)
The Board Secretary is Mrs Gabrielle Hewitson.
Find out more information on the Board members.
Members of committees are as follows:
(Committees may include members who are not members of the Board)
Advisory Committee:
Associate Professor Larry McNicol (Chair), Mr Ken Davis, Dr Craig French,
Professor James Isbister, Dr George Kotsiou, Dr Rob Lindeman,
Dr Jeff Lipman, Dr Darryl Maher, Associate Professor Alison Street,
Mr Daryl Teague
Ethics Committee:
Professor Douglas Joshua (Chair), Professor Tony Cunningham,
Ms Geraldine Farrell, Ms Debra Holder, Reverend Graham Perry, Ms Carolyn Pikl,
Professor John Rasko, Dr Bryan Rush
Finance & Audit Committee:
Mr Jim Swinden (Chair), Mr Andrew Eddy, Ms Kelly Jones, Mr Ross Pinney,
Major Buildings Committee:
Dr Anne Fletcher (Chair), Mr James Bargh, Dr David Graham, Ms Jill Garner,
Hon Dr David Hamill, Mr Reg Hobbs, Ms Jennifer Williams
Nominations & Remuneration Committee:
Hon Dr David Hamill (Chair), Mr Ron Berenholtz, Mr Ross Pinney, Mr Jim Swinden, Ms Jennifer Williams
Risk Committee:
Dr David Graham (Chair), Mr Graham Addison, Hon Dr David Hamill, Ms Jennifer Williams
Governance Policy document
Good Governance Principles Policy - Dec 2009.pdf (39k)