I gave blood yesterday.
I’m not looking for any applause or anything. Clearly, I do it as an altruistic gesture, but I also know that the red stuff is in short supply.
There are two things that have always baffled me about the process of giving blood:
1) If you tell people who aren’t donors, they always look at you in a ‘You freak’ kind of way, as if it’s the most awful thing anyone could ever do.
2) It takes around 40 minutes to complete a donation, but only 5 minutes (in my case) is the actual process of the collecting the amount they need (much less than a pint, you may be interested to know).
I know they have to go through lots of protocols and safety measures, but I’m amazed that such a simple procedure – sticking a needle in someone’s arm and collecting the blood – can take so long.
Anyway, I feel very virtuous and was told today that I’ve probably saved around 10 people in my life, as a result of giving blood (something to do with ratios of people who receive it in a casualty environment, rather than for cancer or an operation).
If you’ve never done it and have always thought you’ll get around to it, don’t delay. Log onto their website now and book a session!
Good on you Rob. I haven’t given blood in ages because where I work it takes about 2 hours of waiting around to give blood and you can’t get a times appointment. That’s a chunk of time off work and I have a job to do. It makes me angry how they spend money on advertising and should invest in a few more attendants and admin.