Skip to main content

New! You can personalise your feed. Try it now

Advertisement

Advertisement

Once 'scared of the needle', semi-retiree, 64, donates blood for 100th time; HSA says more seniors among donors

SINGAPORE — A regular face at the Bloodbank@Woodlands, Mr Ridzwan Rahman makes an effort to visit the blood donation centre once every three months.

Mr Ridzwan Rahman, 64, donating blood for his 100th time on Feb 16, 2023.

Mr Ridzwan Rahman, 64, donating blood for his 100th time on Feb 16, 2023.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp
  • Mr Ridzwan Rahman, a 64-year-old retiree, said he donates blood because it's the "right thing to do"
  • He was donating blood for the 100th time on Thursday (Feb 16)
  • He was one of 1,600 seniors above the age of 60 who donated in 2022, making up just 2 per cent of the donor population last year
  • Currently, blood stocks in Singapore are either at low or moderate levels, said the Health Sciences Authority

SINGAPORE — A regular face at the Bloodbank@Woodlands, Mr Ridzwan Rahman makes an effort to visit the blood donation centre once every three months.

Zooming to the registration counter and later for his health check-up once the centre opened at noon, the 64-year-old semi-retiree stood out as he seemed to be the only calm person among the donors.

“I booked my appointment online, so I can do the questionnaire online and then quickly go and donate,” he told TODAY, explaining his usual routine.

“When I donate, I never have coffee before that because your haemoglobin level will be low. And I always eat walnuts and dates because they are high in iron.”

Mr Ridzwan joked about how the mark on his arm from donating blood makes it easier for the healthcare workers to find his vein. And before a word can be said by staff members, he is already squeezing a stress ball and ready to donate.

It is all second nature for him. After all, he was donating blood for the 100th time on Thursday (Feb 16), just a month shy of his 65th birthday.

Mr Ridzwan is one of about 1,600 seniors above the age of 60 who donated blood in 2022, representing about 2 per cent of the donor population in Singapore for that year.

More and more seniors above 60 have been donating blood, said a spokesperson from the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) — 2022’s figure is about 30 per cent more than 2018’s.

To be able to donate blood past the age of 60, seniors must have donated at least once before turning 60. 

Regular donors can donate blood up to the age of 75 as long as they are healthy. And from the age of 66, seniors must have donated at least once in the last three years and be medically certified to be healthy.

“We need to be extra careful with seniors who are first-time donors, as they may be more prone to vasovagal events such as fainting and other adverse reactions,” said HSA.

“The health check and the upper age limit serve as added precautionary measures to ensure that blood donation does not affect our seniors’ health negatively.”

The only time Mr Ridzwan felt nervous on Thursday was when he was getting his haemoglobin levels checked — men have to have at least 13g per decilitre to be able to donate while women must have at least 12.5g per decilitre.

Once he was cleared with a 13.2g per decilitre reading, Mr Ridzwan was all smiles.

Bloodbank@Woodlands at Woodlands Civic Centre on Feb 16, 2023.

IT MAKES ME FEEL 'REFRESHED'

Mr Ridzwan learnt about blood donation at 17, while serving his National Service. However, he was not eligible to donate blood as he did not meet the minimum requirements — though he could not recall what was the reason for him being rejected.

“I’ve always wanted to donate blood and do my part, so one day I went (to HSA building in) Outram. And then they said I could,” said Mr Ridzwan, whose blood type is A+. That was on Sept 24, 1985.

“I remember being scared of the needle because it was so long and thick. But after the first or second time, I got used to it.”

From then on, he became a regular donor.

And when Bloodbank@Woodlands opened its doors at Woodlands Civic Centre in 2011, Mr Ridzwan, a resident in the area, no longer needed to make hour-long trips to Outram to donate his blood.

Beyond doing good, he regularly donates blood because it makes him feel “refreshed”.

“Maybe because when I donate blood, my body has to produce more so I feel very young again,” he joked.

“There’s always a need for blood, so I try to stay healthy so that I can continue donating. It’s also just good for my health in general.”

While he does not exercise, Mr Ridzwan is often busy helping out with household chores and taking care of his six grandchildren.

He describes himself as "semi-retired"; he left his job as a trainer at SMRT in 2019 and now plans to take on a security job to keep himself active.

In the near future, he hopes to be able to provide apheresis donations — where specific blood components such as platelets, plasma or red cell are donated — should his age and health permit.

Specifying that he wished to donate platelets, Mr Ridzwan said that with apheresis donations, he can donate once a month instead of once every three months.

Currently, blood stocks in Singapore are either at low or moderate levels, said HSA. According to the Singapore Red Cross website, O+ blood is at critical levels as of Feb 17. 

While he is unsure if he’ll be able to reach his 200th donation before he meets the cut-off age, Mr Ridzwan said that he will “continue donating for as long as HSA lets me”.

“It’s not painful or difficult. And it’s the right thing to do,” he said.

Blood donors at Bloodbank@Woodlands on Feb 16, 2023.

Related topics

blood donation HSA Singapore Red Cross

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.