Like many blood donors, Tim Jessup’s first donation took place while at high school. What initially seemed like a good excuse for some time out of class with his friends, soon became a regular occurrence in Tim’s life. And, as he says, one of his greatest achievements to date.
“I grew up in Australia, and after donating that first time with friends it became an enjoyable, regular part of my life. My friends also continued to donate regularly, and we would even compete to see who could donate the most often. The milkshakes also helped to motivate us!”
It didn’t stop there, while at University in Tasmania studying Chemistry and Mechatronics, Tim continued to regularly donate blood, eventually switching to plasma after learning about the number of lifesaving products that could be made from one donation. He kept up the donations when he crossed the ditch and moved to New Zealand in 2014.
Plasma holds essential antibodies and proteins and is used to make 11 lifesaving products for Kiwis in need. The demand for plasma products in New Zealand is continually growing and to keep up 7,000 new donors are needed by July 2021.
Ten years later, Tim has now given 121 blood and plasma donations, but it was his 107th donation made at the Christchurch Donor Centre, on February 26, 2019, that left a lasting impression.
“It was just like any other day at the donor centre really, nothing out of the ordinary happened. I chatted to the nurses, read my book, donated plasma and then off I went to work. I could not have imagined what was to come.”
16 months on, Tim was told his plasma donation in February 2019 may have helped save the lives of some people critically injured in the Christchurch mosque attacks in March 2019. *
Leave a Reply