Blood donation

Today, I was given a very grave news that made me cry. Unfortunately I am not able to elaborate in detail what the grave news was about.It really dampened my morning.
So today, I went down to the sundry shop at my hospital to grab some ice latte (yes, I'm stressed, that's why had to get some coffee), and I noticed some PDN (Pusat Darah Negara) banners in the lobby. Yay, blood donation drive. Perhaps today is my lucky day, I get to donate blood. I have been trying for the past 3 years.
The first year my Hb was only 9, the second year I was having menses and last year I was on antibiotics. What do you need to donate blood. Well the process is simple. First of all you have to answer a questionnaire and fill your details on the blood card. There will usually be an officer there that will help you clarify the questionnaire. Then you go to the lab tech, who will take a sample of your blood for blood grouping and also see whether your iron content in the blood (heme content) is sufficient via float method, i.e. they put a drop of your blood in a special solution. If the droplet sinks means you have enough iron, if not then your iron content is low and you are not allowed to donate. Then you are passed to a medical officer, who will read through the questionnaire and see whether you are eligible to donate. Once the screening is satisfactory, you wait in line as they get you a couch to lie and donate your blood.
So excitedly I filled up the questionnaire which asks about your present health status and were you sick in the past 1 week, whether you slept more than 5 hours last night, your past medical problems, history of fits and mental illness, usage of certain medications, your high risk behaviour profile. Most of the questions were answered well except for migraine and a part on mental illness. I had a family history. I was excited until I reached the last 2 questions i.e. 16 and 17 taht completely blew any chance of me donating in this country in the long run. The question asks about whether i have stayed in Europe for more than 6 months within the period of 1980 uptill now. I grew up in the UK, definitely failed that last question. And until they decide to amend that clause, it looks like I wouldn't be a blood donor in Malaysia after all. Oh well, at least I can still donate my organs.
To my friends out there, if you are well and fit without any problems, and weigh more than 45 kiloes, and fulfill most of the criterias, please do not hesitate to donate blood. Our blood banks are running low and its the end of the year, festive season to be exact, and a lot of people are injured in MVAs requiring a lot of blood products. Its not hard to donate, and its a no issue since in 90 days your red blood cells will be regenerated, and thus back to normal. They will only take about 1 pint of blood depending on your weight and sex.
Some side effects immediately after donating would be some headache for some, feeling a bit tired and some even have nausea. But normally you will feel back to normal within the same day. You may also have some bruises at the site of puncture but it'll disappear within the week. As a blood donor, there are certain benefits for you, where you are given a red book with the benefits written in it. It would include given priority to be saved in event of catastrophe or any emergency, free ward stay in govt hospitals, upgrades to better class and if you donate more than 30 times in your life, the govt will pay for all your medical expenditures. Not bad for medical benefits no? And all it takes is just a pint of your blood perhaps every 6 months to 1 year.