The Day I Saved Three Lives

They told me I had just saved three lives, so I proudly went about the rest of my day repeating that fact. “I just saved three lives,” I said to the grocery store checkout clerk. “I saved three lives today,” I told the lady at the lotto booth.

Last month, Canadian Blood Services put out a call for blood donors due to a national shortage. The last time I had given blood was many years ago – back when blood donation was still in the hands of the Red Cross. I had been a semi-regular donor since the age of sixteen, but that last time, the nurse (perhaps she was having a bad day) told me my blood was coming out too slowly, and suggested I probably shouldn’t come back.

So I didn’t. For fifteen, maybe twenty years. Then, when I heard about this shortage, I thought, “What the heck is keeping me from donating again? I’m healthy, I don’t mind needles, I can find the time. And that cranky nurse is definitely long gone.” So I made an appointment, went down to the clinic, and was in and out in an hour. I would like to point out to whoever’s listening that my blood came out in a mere ten minutes! And I was probably thanked for donating more than half a dozen times in the course of that hour, so it was an excellent self-esteem boost.

Jillian Brown, of Canadian Blood Services, says people have really stepped up since the recent call for donations. “We actually had an incredible response from Canadians coast to coast, and we are no longer in ‘urgent need’ mode. That said, blood has a shelf life of 42 days, and platelets have a shelf life of five days, so that's a really big challenge.”

Brown explained to me that each donation is separated into three different products (whole blood components, plasma and platelets) which can go to three different patients – thus the “saving three lives” figure. She also told me that they are heading into a really challenging period – the holidays.

“The need for blood is constant because of its limited shelf life,” she says. “But right now, forecasts are showing that more blood is going to be going out the door than coming in between December 1 and January 2.”

No doubt some people stay away because they’re just not fond of being poked with sharp instruments. “You know what?” Brown says. “We're not going to lie. We are asking people to come and help, but we are going to put a needle in your arm.” She laughs when I tell her I have a friend whose greatest fear is the pricking of the fingertip. “Yes,” she admits, “we are also going to prick your finger, and it's going to hurt a little bit, but not for very long.”

So what is it that keeps people from donating over the holidays? Brown acknowledges that it’s just a busier time of year for most folks. “People are preoccupied. There's the regular holiday stuff going on - kids’ school plays, Christmas concerts, Christmas parties, shopping. Blood donation just isn't top of mind.”

So here’s your reminder. It takes about an hour. It doesn’t hurt much, and you get free cookies and juice. Plus you get bragging rights for the next 56 days – until your next donation. And it seems like a pretty good Christmas gift for those three recipients, who might not behaving a holiday that’s quite as merry as yours.