By CASEY NEILL
SPRINGVALE man James Boase was cornered into making his first blood donation.
Last week he happily made his 600th.
Mr Boase still remembers his father-in-law taking him to the blood bank in the Melbourne CBD on 28 March 1968.
“He literally dragged me in there and I guess you could say it was one of the terms and conditions of marrying his daughter,” he said.
“Things have changed. They used glass bottles to do it when I first started.
“It only takes about an hour now. It took an hour and a half back then.
“What doesn’t change is the immense contribution that you feel. It gives you peace of mind that you’re helping people.”
Mr Boase donates plasma every fortnight.
“It’s the white blood cells. It’s used in transfusions and to stop bleeding and in burns and immune deficiencies,” he said.
A machine removes blood from the donor, spins it around to remove the plasma and pumps the rest back into the donor.
“Then it goes through another cycle until the bag is full,” Mr Boase said.
“I could virtually do it myself, now.
“On your first time it’s daunting but once you’ve done it umpteen times you get used to it. You get into a rhythm.”
On 14 November he handed over his B-positive blood for the 600th time in Mt Waverley – a blood group he shares with about 8 per cent of the population.
He shared his milestone to encourage other people to follow his lead.
“I’m asking anyone hesitating to give it a go,” he said.
“It’s only takes a small amount of time.
“And you don’t know what’s around the corner, do you?
“It’s the fear of the unknown. Once you get over that, it’s fine.”
Mr Boase said donating blood was a good way to get a health check, including blood pressure and blood sugar levels.
He’s taken blood bank tours to see how donations are processed and compare healthy and diseased cells and even been a recipient of his own donation.
“I had a knee operation and they took my blood and then I got it back later on,” he said.
Mr Boase has had spells where he was unable to donate.
“When you have an operation you can’t donate for three months,” he said.
“But it’s just something in my life that I’ve got used to doing.”
“I just think ‘where would we be without blood donors?’
“Don’t hesitate – get in there and have a go.
“They need heaps of blood, especially at Christmas time and Easter when there’s people out on the road.”
One in 30 people give blood, but one in three people will need blood in their lifetime.
A single donation can help at least three different patients and contribute to 22 different products, including immunisations.
Call 13 95 96 or visit www.donateblood.com.au.
