Donating something of you
- D. M. Wright
- Mar 27
- 3 min read
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DONTATING BLOOD
Many people need regular blood transfusions to help treat their medical condition.
Examples of how blood donations are used include the treatment of cancer, anaemia, and blood, stomach and kidney diseases.
One blood donation can save up to 3 lives.
You can choose to donate:
- blood
- plasma (the liquid part of your blood)
- platelets (cell fragments that help with blood clotting)
If you're aged 18 to 75 years, feeling well and weigh over 50kg, you can probably give blood in Australia.
There are some things that may affect your eligibility to donate, such as your:
- medications
- medical history (for example, if your iron is low, you are pregnant or recently pregnant)
- travel history
- sexual history
Australian Red Cross Lifeblood has a full list of eligibility criteria and an eligibility checker to help you work out if you can donate blood. Click HERE.
You can donate blood every 12 weeks or plasma every 2 weeks.
DONATING ORGANS
One minute is all it takes to register as an organ donor.
Up to 7 lives can be saved by a single organ donor.
Only 513 people became organ donors in 2023.
It’s an incredibly generous act to register as an organ and tissue donor.
Organ donation is a rare event. Only around 2% of people who die in Australian hospitals – approximately 1,250 every year – meet the criteria required to be an organ donor.
That’s why it’s important for people to register and tell their loved ones that they want to be a donor. Families of potential organ donors will be asked to say "Yes" to organ and tissue donation before it can proceed.
Across Australia, tens of thousands of lives have been touched by organ and tissue donation
thanks to your generosity.
Registering at donatelife.gov.au only takes one minute, and all you need is your Medicare card.
You can also join the Australian Organ Donor Register through MyGov, the Express Plus Medicare app or a paper-based form.
Anyone over the age of 16 can register, and almost anyone can donate organs and tissue, even if you can’t donate blood.
Whether the donation actually happens depends on where and how a person dies, and the condition of their organs and tissue.
If you are already registered, you can do more. Talk to your family and friends. Tell them you want to be a donor and encourage them to register, too.
DONATING SPERM
Making a sperm donation is one of the most generous things you can do. It gives others the chance to have a baby.
There is a significant need for sperm donations in Australia, with thousands of people waiting for sperm donors to help them grow their family.
The reasons why people need to access donor sperm are varied. They include those having difficulty conceiving because of male reproductive issues, single women who want to have a child, and same-sex couples wanting to grow their family.
You may be eligible to donate sperm if you’re a healthy man aged between 21 and 45, and you’re willing to donate for free (It's illegal in Australia to pay donors.)
IVF and sperm donation are done through the private sector. Below are a few links in no particular order, and this list is not exhaustive:
DONATING EGGS
If you’re considering donating your eggs, it is a truly remarkable gift. There are many people in Australia who need an egg donor to help them achieve their dreams of having a family.
Those might include:
- Women who are going through premature menopause
- if there is a risk of passing on genetic disease
- if a woman’s ovaries have been affected by chemotherapy or serious illness
- if a woman has had IVF treatment but repeated cycles have indicated poor egg quality
- same-sex male couples in need of donor eggs to have their family.
Ideally, egg donors should be aged between 21 and 36, with no medical or genetic conditions.
IVF and egg donations are done through the private sector. Below are a few links in no particular order, and this list is not exhaustive:
RESOURCES
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