Australia's Red Cross says it is in desperate need of blood and plasma donors to boost its supplies - both now and over the Easter long weekend.
In order to meet demand, Red Cross Lifeblood needs 3600 people to donate blood over the next week alone, in particular people who are A, B and O Positive and universal O Negative.
Lifeblood Executive Director Cath Stone said despite record numbers of people donating blood and plasma, hospitals were using donated blood at their highest rate in nearly a decade.
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"We now have more donors than at any point in the past 10 years, however demand for all blood groups, especially O Negative continues to increase as hospitals catch up on surgeries post-pandemic."
The blood groups included in the call out make up about 90 per cent of the Australian population.
"In particular, O Negative has the universal blood type and is used to treat patients when their blood type is unknown. It's often stocked in ambulances and rescue helicopters to be used for trauma patients who can require huge quantities in a short amount of time," Stone said.
"Fewer than seven per cent of the Australian population is O Negative, making it one of the rarer blood types, however its versatility means it makes up 16 per cent of the blood ordered by hospitals."
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The Red Cross is also asking for people to make an appointment to give blood between Good Friday and Easter Monday, which is often a time when donations plunge.
"The need for blood is often unplanned and urgent and Easter is often a time when many of our donors take a break," Stone said.
"This year, more than 40 of our donor centres around the country will be open on Good Friday so we are asking people to book in and come back for another donation when they are next eligible, to ensure we can keep hospital fridges well stocked.
"With one in three of us needing donated blood or blood products in our lifetime, the life you save could be that of friend or family member."
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