My company is having a blood donation drive this Tuesday. Below is a checklist on whether a person is eligible to donate blood.
Blood Donation Checklist:
1. Healthy today.
2. 18 – 65 years old.
3. Weight 45kg or more.
4. More than 5 hours sleep.
5. Breakfast or lunch before donation (within 4 hours).
6. 3 months or more after last blood donation.
7. No medical problems (discuss with Medical Officer).
8. Not on any medication (discuss with Medical Officer).
9. Not having menses for the past 3 days.
10. Not pregnant/breast feeding.
11. Not a drug abuser.
12. Not a homosexual (Men having sex with another man).
13. Do not have multiple sexual partners (more than one partner within 6 months).
14. Do not have sex with prostitutes.
15. No tattoos, ear/body piercing or acupuncture within 12 months.
16. Not stayed in UK and Europe during 1980 – 1996.
Based on the checklist above, I should be allowed to donate blood, if I wanted to. Let me check.
1. Should be
2. 26.
3. More, a lot more.
4. This would have failed on normal days but I will try to sleep early.
5. Bread.
6. Must have been years since the last time.
7. Not that I know of.
8. Nope.
9. N/A.
10. N/A.
11. The only drug I do is caffeine — 5 parts coffee, half parts sugar and 8 parts creamer. I think they will close an eye on this.
12. Is this discrimination? Does this mean that lesbians are allowed to donate but not their homosexual male counterparts?
13. Passed.
14. Passed. (Thank goodness for that “s”.)
15. None.
16. Never been there. Have I?
I have to admit that I am not a frequent blood donor. I have probably donated only two or three times so far. I did a quick search and found several reports of blood supply shortage in Malaysia.
I wonder if compensating people with cash like how some other countries do would increase the number of blood donors. Not that I want to be compensated that way but let’s face it, we live in a materialistic world. Some people donate blood sincerely. Some people donate blood because they feel/were forced to. Some people donate blood because others are donating as well and they do not want to look like selfish maggots.
Apart from these blood donation campaigns held nearby your work place and those you coincidentally come across in public places, would you go through the hassle of traffic jams, parking, and whatnot to a blood donation center (wherever that is) just do donate blood — sincerely?
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16. Not stayed in UK and Europe during 1980 – 1996.
why this?
Good question. I was curious as well but did not find out further. Since you asked, I did a search and found the reason why.
Mad Cow Disease
I am organizing a Blood Donation drive for my company this 16 May 2009. Having to do a presentation on the R&R on blood donation to all the staff was a challenge not to make them laugh, esp the homosexual, prostitute, strange rules. While in Europe, u can donate blood even if you are gay, Stipulation no:16 is actually very common and set by WHO. Even in France they have that regulation to prevent certain citizen from other countries from donating.
Looking at the stringent checklist, I believe there is very less qualifiers for blood donation in Malaysia.
I would like to make a blood donation. Kindly left me some info pls…thanks!!
I just read on the National Blood Centre that if you have ever lived in the European continent ANYTIME between 1980 and NOW, you are not eligible. So perhaps for the rest of my life (if they never change this criteria), although I may be eager to donate, I will never be able to! Ridiculous.
how about those who short around 146-150 cm. Their weight are usually around 43 to 45. Usually, height around 146 is 44 kg and if they weight more than that, they are usually physically fat. So, for me why must 45 kg without seeing the height???
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