- 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.
Organ Donation
In Australia, there are typically 2,000 or more people waiting for organs or tissue donations. These people are seriously ill and for many the generosity of an organ donor is their only chance for life itself.
Australia has one of the lowest organ donation rates in the world. In 2008 we had 12 donors per million population compared with 34.6 for Spain.
There are waiting lists for organ donations due to the relative shortage of donors and it is essential that more people consider becoming an organ donor and that they discuss it with family. If you are interested in becoming a donor, you can register your consent by joining the Australian Organ Donor Register or calling 1800 777 203
The Australian Organ and Tissue Donation Authority was established on 1 January 2009 to oversee a nationally coordinated approach to organ and tissue donation for transplantation. Each State and Territory has a DonateLife™ agency which manages organ donation for their jurisdiction.
The DonateLife™ Network works with hospitals throughout Australia to organise donation and retrieval of organs as well as raising community awareness.
For more information on DonateLife™ visit their website