Giving blood for the cause...

So what did I get up to last night? I had a nice easy lie down for 90 minutes on a bed in Glasgow. And why, I hear you ask? We all thought you were really busy?

Well, once a month I go up to the Blood Donor Centre in Glasgow to give platelets. Platelet donations are really important - unlike whole blood, they can only be stored for about a week, so the Blood Transfusion Service really need a regular supply. Platelets are used to treat a number of different illnesses and diseases - prematurely born babies often need a platelet boost, they are used to treat different types of cancer, and people with a condition called Haemophilia need platelets.

Platelets are the part of the blood that helps it clot and form a scab when you cut yourself. Without platelets, you would just bleed and bleed and bleed. So they are really important!

Not everyone can become a platelet donor - you have to be fit and healthy (so why they accepted me I have no idea!), aged at least 17, have a higher than average platelet count, have a particular type of blood group, and be prepared to commit to donating at least once per month. As a consequence of this, there are only about 1000 platelet donors in the whole of Scotland - so I feel quite proud! But perhaps there is a member of staff somewhere who could think about it - or one of the 6th years who will be studying in Glasgow next year?

Of course, far more people donate whole blood - which you can do three times a year from the age of 17 (come on, senior pupils - where are you?) - and you always get free tea, coffee, or juice, and a good selection of biccies (last night I had a Tunnock's Teacake, a taxi chocolate bar, and a packet of TUC cheesy biscuits). Whole blood donation is just as important as platelet donations - you might have seen the recent TV advert campaigns. So make a commitment to look at this after your 17th birthday - but remember, if you've had a piercing or a tattoo within the last year, that's you out for a while! I am informed that we recently had a talk from the Scottish Blood Transfusion Service on this, and last weekend 27 17 year olds gave blood in the Kilmarnock area when the mobile donation vehicle was here. Were any of them from KA? For more information, look at this website: http://www.scotblood.co.uk/

OK, I hear you ask - why is all this blood stuff on a School Librarian's blog? Well, the lie down I talked about earlier on is a great chance to catch up on reading - last night I got through some more of KM Grant's book "The Blue Flame" - because myself, Ms Fullerton & 20 eager S1 pupils are off to see her this afternoon at Stewarton Academy!

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SK