Blood boost helps save lives

Blood donor Wendy Hines.

EVERY three months for the past 26 years, Wendy Hines has done something that has the potential to save lives.

She is one of a select few volunteers to have given more than 100 blood donations.

The Woodend resident will be among hundreds of “milestone” donors to be honoured by the Red Cross Blood Service at the Brisbane Convention Centre on Saturday.

“I think everyone should go along and give a blood donation, even if it's only one,” Mrs Hines said.

“Everybody needs blood at some time in their lives.

“It takes about 10 minutes to give blood – you should allow about half an hour out of your day.”

Ms Hines falls into the 2% of the Australian population with AB positive type blood.

She says donors have to declare they have no known diseases before giving their blood, although the Red Cross does checks.

When she first became a donor, she wasn't going out to work.

“I thought maybe I should go and do something to help people in the community,” she said.

“A friend mentioned she was off to the Blood Bank and, I thought, I can do that.”

The Red Cross needs about 26,000 donations a week to meet the demand around Australia.

The “milestone” donor awards are being held during National Blood Donor Week which ends on Saturday.

Just 3% of Australians currently give blood.

Red Cross spokeswoman Belinda Haynes said thousands of people relied on blood and blood products to stay alive.

“Donation levels can drop to critical levels in winter due to colds and flu, and we need as many new donors as we can get,” she said.

For more information, phone 13 14 95 or visit donateblood.com.au.