OFTEN we admire nurses, doctors and specialists who have studied long and hard to hone their life-saving skills, and full credit to them.
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But it is important for the rest of us to realise we, too, have the power to save lives.
While it does require us to give up a little of our time, if you think about the many hours we waste, say, watching trashy TV programs that we've forgotten within a week, the sacrifice is not that great.
What we are of course talking about is giving blood, something that is so easy that we can do it while we are sitting down.
Not everyone is eligible to donate blood.
But for those who are and are yet to do it, think about how you would feel if you, yourself, or a loved one depended on blood donations to survive.
Does that make it worth getting off the couch?
Because even though one in three Australians will need blood or blood products in their lifetime, at the moment only one in 30 donate.
The Red Cross Blood Service is hoping statistics comparing the frequency and overall volume of blood donated by men and women in Dubbo (albeit very, very close) will prompt both sexes to literally roll up their sleeves and help out.
Realistically, someone dependent on a blood donation to survive is probably not going to be fussy about whether the life-saving liquid came from a man or a woman.
And whether you have donated blood two or 200 times, your contribution is valuable.
Because blood donors are all such generous people, their blood is literally worth bottling.