Quote:
|
Originally Posted by AccyJay
This is something i'm interested in becoming, i don't know where or when the blood donor sessions are in Accrington.
|
Try this link:
http://www.blood.co.uk/pages/search.asp
I've been donating blood here in the USA since college days (smart college gave the dormitory with the highest percentage of residents donating a keg of beer! My dorm made a point of always winning the "Blood Keg!"). Thank you in advance for becoming a blood donor - I've sent a bit of karma your way!
I'm going to speak about organ donation from a slightly different angle. Earlier this year, I lost my wife. She had been on dialysis for more than three years as a complication of insulin-dependent diabetes. She had been diabetic from the age of ten, but had taken great care of herself, so that she still had her eyesight and her feet and legs (not to mention her life) after 49 years with this insidious disease. Had a kidney been available to her, the odds that she would still be alive are very high. Had I been eligible to donate one of my kidneys to her, I would not have hesitated for a moment. Many more organ donors are needed, but many folks will not be bothered to fill out the donor card.
I've seen the dialysis ward, and made friends with many patients who "disappear" forever for want of a kidney that someone else no longer needs. I've also seen the huge improvement in both health and quality of life for those lucky ones who find a donor in time. Anyone who has been there knows what they should do regarding a donor card.
I think that the concept of "opting out" is excellent. Just give folks the opportunity to opt out each time the drivers license is renewed. Also, provide a website so that folks who wish to opt out can do so at their convenience. With today's technology, a national database that hospitals can access would also be possible so that carrying a card would not be necessary. No one should be forced to donate, but I do think that the principle of having the default process serve the greater good for the greater number of people is a wise policy.
To put it bluntly, when folks lives are at stake, I have very little use for those who choose to hoard kidneys (or other organs) that they no longer have a use for. It is your right to do so, but exercising that right is an awfully selfish act!