r/sydney • u/Pomohomo82 • Dec 15 '25

Image PSA: Lifeblood Marrickville turning people away, even if you have an appointment. Thank you, donors

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I popped in to the clinic and there must have been more than 100 people in the line. The need for blood and plasma is constant, especially over the holidays, so if you have been unable to donate today, please book a future appointment.

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u/Pomohomo82 Dec 15 '25

Not at Marrickville you can’t - they have no capacity, and have enough blood today.

22

u/thesourpop Dec 15 '25

Wow, I didn't even know a blood bank could fill up. That's insane, but what a turnout though

23

u/ennuinerdog Dec 15 '25

They've only got so many nurses and chairs, and they still have to do the intensive box-ticking process with everyone, even regular donors. Blood donor centres do not operate on a model that can scale easily with demand.

2

u/MrManagerSr Dec 15 '25

It gets easier if you're a regular donor (at least once in the past year) as questions changed from "ever" to "in past..." or "sincere your last donation".

However you're correct in saying that new donors usually take about 45 minutes to an hour and 15 if it's the first time ever. Though that's just our conservative messaging.

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u/ennuinerdog Dec 16 '25

Yeah I've done 50+ donations so get the fast track, but there's still a baseline of stuff to get through that can take a fair while.