Saving lives drives former deputy mayor to donate blood despite phobia

The New Zealand Blood Service is on a mission to challenge more than 40,000 New Zealanders to “Find Their Why” and become donors.

But in Palmerston North, former deputy mayor Aleisha Rutherford found her challenge was overcoming her reason not to – a phobia of needles and blood.

Still nervous after having donated three times before, she took time before her appointment during national blood donor week to sum up the courage to walk in.

“I come early and sit in my car and freak out for half an hour.”

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The phobia had been with her as long as she can remember, most distinctly when getting her MMR vaccination at school.

That fear was the reason why it took years for her to tick off the good intention that had been on her bucket list since she was a teenager.

And it was the city council acting chief executive Chris Dyrhberg, himself a regular plasma donor, who helped her take the plunge, talking her through the details of what happened during the process.

During the quarter-hour session in the chair, through preparations, donation of 470ml of whole blood, and after-care, she would not look at what was going on.

She was happy to be told she had a good vein, and was producing an amazing flow.

“But I don’t want to see.

“The whole think about the needle piercing skin and the blood is just yuck.”

But she has done it. Not just once now, but four times.

After her first donation, she heard about a four-year-old with leukaemia who was being kept alive through regular blood transfusions.

She was convinced by the information that each donation could help three people, and was encouraged by the app that told her each time her donation had been used.

“So how can you not?”

Blood service national marketing and communications manager Asuka Burge said the nation’s 117,000 donors saved the lives of 30,000 people a year.

But many were growing older and ageing out of the donor register, while the demand for blood and blood products was growing every year.

The number of donors had only grown by 9000 in the past five years.

“We have reached a tipping point.

“If we can’t encourage more people to join the donor registry, we may no longer continue to be self-reliant for blood and plasma products in Aotearoa.”

Currently about 4% of the population were blood donors.

Manawatū had 4657 donors who made 255 donations each week, and needed another 1647 to join the register.

Burge said the challenge was to break down the barriers around blood donation and motivate more of the eligible population to roll up their sleeves.

There were only a handful of reasons why people could not donate blood, such as non-prescription intravenous drug use or having spent six months in the UK, France or Ireland between 1980 and 1996.

Having had a recent tattoo or body piercing, some medications or illness could prompt a temporary stand-down from donating.

New blood or plasma donors can make their first donation any time after their 16th birthday and before their 71st birthday. Existing donors, those who have donated blood within the last two years, can donate until their 75th birthday and may continue to donate until their 81st birthday, subject to authorisation from a NZBS Medical Officer.

Being too busy was not on the list of reasons why not to give.

“It’s just half an hour,” Rutherford said.

“It’s just another thing to do that day. Not enough time is not an excuse.”