2000 registrations needed before the end of June

MEDIA RELEASE
14 June 2012


2000 registrations needed before the end of June

Today, a New Zealander will receive a life-saving blood transfusion or blood product every 12 and a half minutes*. Each will be just one of the thousands ‘rescued’ every year by a declining number of heroic blood donors, with recent statistics suggesting many are unaware of how important their voluntary contributions really are.

World Blood Donor Day – Thursday 14 June

If you have donated blood in the past or would like to start, the New Zealand Blood Service wants you to register your interest with them today on World Blood Donor Day, which is being celebrated to thank those who save lives through blood donation.

The Blood Service is looking for 2,000 people to register to donate before the end of June to keep the current donor database** in steady, good health.

“With just weeks to go before our ‘official year-end’ on 30 June, we are recording a net loss of around 2,000 people from our donor register, which we’d like to recoup,” says Paul Hayes, Marketing and Communications Manager for the New Zealand Blood Service.

“Doing so ensures a larger group of donors are available to share the load of supplying more than 140,000 units of life-saving blood to our health services in the year ahead.”

The Blood Service has been actively recruiting to maintain the register throughout the year. Already, more than 8,900 past donors have been reinstated and another 14,500 new donors added, but the remaining shortfall needs to be addressed to keep numbers constant at around 90,000 donors annually nationwide.

“With a foundation of committed donors and carefully managed collections, our supply of blood and blood products to health services will not be at all compromised.

“This situation does indicate, however, that there is a modest decline in awareness amongst New Zealanders of just how important their blood donations are to us and to those in need. We want to reserve the current trend and also let donors to know that their actions really do make a difference.”

Become a hero today. Please register to donate, or make an appointment, at www.nzblood.co.nz or on 0800 GIVE BLOOD.

* Calculation based on the statistic of approximately 42,000 people needing blood or blood products in New Zealand each year.

** ‘Current donor register’ refers to the database of active blood donors.

About the New Zealand Blood Service:
The New Zealand Blood Service (NZBS) in a not-for-profit Crown entity responsible for the collection, processing, testing and storage and distribution of all blood and blood products in New Zealand.

We rely on voluntary and non-remunerated blood donations from individuals around the country in order to provide a constant supply of precious blood and blood products used by our health services to save thousands of lives.

• The need for donors is constant – we must collect around 3,000 donations every week nationally and are always working to maintain and grow our register of donors to make this possible.
• In New Zealand, around 42,000 people need donated blood every year.
• There is no alternative for patients in need of blood or blood products – blood donors saves lives.
• Less than 4% of eligible New Zealanders currently donate blood, around 90,000.

World Blood Donor Day, celebrated in New Zealand and internationally on Thursday 14 June, is our most important annual campaign to remind New Zealanders of the importance of donating blood and encourage more people to donate more regularly.

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