‘Can't do it': Type-O blood reserves hit dire lows, calls for urgent donations
Reserves of O-type blood are running critically low in Australia.
The Red Cross has issued an urgent call for an extra 9500 donations within the next week.
'Every day, we issue close to 10,000 blood transfusions and medications to hospitals around the country to meet patient demand and we can't do it without people donating,' Red Cross Lifeblood executive director Stuart Chesneau said.
'Right now, we're seeing the highest rates of people rescheduling or cancelling their appointments since June last year, and our O-type blood supplies are at their lowest level since October 2023.'
O-negative is the universal blood type that paramedics and rescue helicopters carry. About 7 per cent of Australians have O-negative blood, but about 16 per cent of blood used by hospitals is O-negative.
'What many people don't know is that O-positive is as safe as O-negative for the majority of emergency transfusions. Some 40 per cent of people in Australia have O-positive blood, meaning they too can help save lives in emergency situations,' Mr Chesneau said.
'We're asking people of all blood types who are feeling healthy and well, especially those with O-type blood, to make an appointment.'
Previous Lifeblood research estimates 57 per cent of Australians are eligible to give blood, but only 3 per cent donate regularly.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
9 minutes ago
- ABC News
Port Lincoln residents stand against council green space development push
Port Lincoln residents have clashed with their council over a proposal to develop green spaces in the city. The council has proposed to revoke the community land classification of five council-owned sites. It said they could be used for aged care, child care or housing if the community saw value in repurposing them. But the proposal has sparked action from residents who say green spaces should be left alone. About 200 Port Lincoln residents gathered on Sunday to voice their concerns over the council's proposal to develop Harbour View Reserve. It has been a popular spot for kids' play, dog walking, and recreation. The reserve could potentially become the site for an aged care facility, which the council said was needed among an ageing demographic. Save Harbour Reserve member Tijana Stockhem said she wanted to protect the community status of the land so it could not be developed. "Once the community status of the land is revoked, there's no protection," Ms Stockhem said. "I guess we have no idea what will be built on this parcel of land, and there's no guarantee as well that any of this parcel of land will remain for the community … which is concerning." Ms Stockhem, a mother of two boys, said she had spoken with more than 100 residents around the area. She said the reserve was valued for recreation. "We'll keep working together as a group to spread awareness and try and protect this space … once this parcel of land is gone, it's gone," she said. "I'm not just thinking of our current mental health ... I'm thinking of the future as well. City of Port Lincoln Mayor Diana Mislov said while she looked forward to receiving feedback, there was a growing need for aged care in the city. "We are an ageing demographic, that's proven by the RDA [Regional Development Australia] studies … we're getting older and staying alive longer and we do need more aged care facilities," she said. "I think there's some more discussion that could be had at the table, just to see where aged care is best suited for in Port Lincoln and what capacity both of those enterprises will have." Senior lecturer in urban and regional planning at Flinders University, Gerti Szili, said the need for more land would grow as more people relocated to regional areas for reasons such as affordability. "Much like metropolitan areas, green space is critical for regional areas as well," Dr Szili said. "I guess the question of how we balance green space with the obvious infrastructure needs and growth … it's not really a simple either-or answer. "It's really about how we manage land use in a way that meets the critical or broader needs of the community without compromising those long-term community wellbeing and liveability aspects." City of Port Lincoln chief executive Eric Brown said it was important to note the demand for aged care, child care and housing had come from the community through council research and community consultation. "Conducted over the past three years, both our Economic Development Strategy and Housing Strategy have identified a critical shortage of child care, aged care, social, affordable, and key worker housing," Mr Brown said. "This concern was strongly echoed in our community Housing Strategy survey, which received over 200 responses — the largest response our housing consultant has ever recorded — highlighting widespread community concern about the lack of housing in Port Lincoln." Mr Brown said Port Lincoln had a relatively high amount of surplus land when compared to other councils and the state average. However, he said very few land parcels were available that met size and infrastructure requirements. "While we acknowledge the valid concerns of residents living near proposed development sites, the broader community — including homelessness support services, aged care providers, and local businesses — are urging council to act," he said.
ABC News
39 minutes ago
- ABC News
Volunteer firefighters battle for fair compensation for presumptive cancers
In recent years volunteer firefighters have tackled unrelenting bushfire seasons while trying to keep their communities safe. And yet, for many volunteers across Australia, if they are diagnosed with presumptive cancer – a cancer believed to be caused as a result of their firefighting duties – many are shocked to find they are not eligible for the same compensation as career firefighters – or, in some cases, not eligible for compensation at all.
ABC News
39 minutes ago
- ABC News
This plaque near a Canberra shopping centre car park offers a window into a family's tragic war story
There are little clues scattered throughout Canberra — a plaque here, a street sign there — pointing to a tragic story of a family that helped forge the nation's capital. Easily missed, they tell the story of a migrant family, three brothers and a fateful, tragic month. Englishman Walter Eddison survived a gassing in France during World War I and fighting on the shores of Gallipoli to set up life with his wife, three sons and three daughters on a 750-acre block on what was then the outskirts of Canberra in 1919. Anthony Hill, historian and author of For the Love of Country which retells the family's tale, said Canberra at that time was still sheep grazing country. "Canberra was just a beginning settlement — a population of only a few thousand. Just as the Eddisons were arriving did work really start," he said. But the outbreak of World War II would pause the growth of the capital and draw in the Eddison family. The three sons left the farm to fight in the war: Tom and Keith as pilots, Jack with the 2/20th Battalion. In 1941, the family received news that Tom was missing — possibly dead — after being shot down returning from a raid over Germany. Mr Hill said the Eddisons couldn't find out any information. Finally, in May 1943, the family received confirmation that Tom had been killed and was buried in the Netherlands. About the same time, the Canberra Times reported Keith was involved in "[giving] one of the severest hammerings this Japanese-occupied land has yet had". Just a fortnight later, days after Tom's death was confirmed, Keith was killed in New Guinea. It was at this time the family also received written correspondence from Jack — a prisoner of war (POW) in the Japanese Naoetsu camp after the fall of Singapore. The letter gave the family hope Jack would one day return. "Right through 1943, '44 and '45, they were waiting for Jack to come home," Mr Hill said. "[They thought], 'When Jack comes back, he'll fix the farm'." But they didn't receive any more correspondence. That letter, received in May 1943, would be the last. Mr Hill said after the news that two of his sons were dead and the other was in a POW camp, Mr Eddison refused to answer the telephone. He couldn't deal with more bad news. Mr Eddison was working out in a paddock when it rang in 1945. "Jack wasn't coming home. "You can imagine the devastating news." Jack Eddison had died of pneumonia on June 17, 1943, — just a fortnight after Keith had been killed. Mr Hill said the family's story showed "the real nature of war". "It was a great tragedy, but they were a stoic, brave family and they carried on," he said. The brothers' niece, Wendy Townley, grew up always feeling like she knew the uncles she had been too young to remember — from the photos on the walls, and the things they'd left behind. "They were part of the family," she said. "This is Jack's horse and Jack's dog and Tom's bed. They were talked about a lot." Yet her grandfather, Walter, never talked about his sons or the war. Ms Townley said she never quite understood as a child just what a tragedy it was. "But you don't ask questions as a kid. I wish I'd asked more about it. "I don't think it really dawned on me how really horrible it was until I had kids of my own and thought, 'Hell, how could you live with that?'. "My grandmother was so strong. She was my hero." Nowadays, the family homestead, called Yamba, has been replaced with a shopping centre. A plaque near the car park is the only remnant it existed at all. There are other tributes to the brothers, too. Mr Hill said the Eddison name was remembered in all sorts of places. "[Canberra] was named after people," he said. There's Yamba Drive, Eddison Park in Woden, and a plaque in St John's Church on the pew where Ms Townley and her family used to sit. "It's lovely the family are remembered," she said. When Ms Townley's brother sat down to start grade six at Canberra Grammar School — the school has a house called Eddison — he looked down to see the name 'Keith Eddison' carved into his desk. What many would have discarded as no more than schoolyard graffiti was just another little clue pointing to a most tragic history. "We're all very proud of the name."
