• Students and staff across Charles Sturt University campuses are competing in the 2020 Inter-campus Blood Donation Challenge
• Charles Sturt in Wagga Wagga leads with 209 of the 530 total donations so far
• Australian Red Cross Lifeblood donation centres remain open, are sanitised and safe

As at Tuesday 19 May, half-way in this year’s Charles Sturt Inter-campus Blood Challenge, students and staff have made 530 donations; Wagga Wagga leads (209 donations), followed by Bathurst (125), Port Macquarie (69), Orange (61), Albury-Wodonga (50), Dubbo (10), Goulburn (4), and Regional Study Centres (2).

Charles Sturt Director of External Engagement for Wagga Wagga and Albury-Wodonga Ms Samantha Beresford said, “This is a great result so far, despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“While I’m delighted that Wagga Wagga leads with the highest number of donations, I note that Orange leads as a percentage of the campus population, with 9.38 per cent.

“I congratulate all our donors, and encourage them to continue to donate; and I urge any students and staff who are considering donating to roll-up their sleeves and become a regular donor.

“The need for blood never stops, and in fact, Australia still needs 29,000 donors every week to meet demand.

 “Donor centres remain open and are sanitised and safe, so if you’re healthy and haven’t travelled overseas in the last 28 days, please book a donation.”

Mr John Feist, account manager with Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, said, “The total number of donations so far has definitely been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with students and staff absent from campuses.

“But it’s great to see they are still donating, mostly at donor centres close to where they live, rather than close to or on campus.

“The Challenge is still happening and students and staff can find the nearest donation centre to their home by using the Find-a-Centre function on the Red Cross website.”

Mr Feist explained that due to COVID-19 social distancing restrictions, Lifeblood has had to reschedule some donation appointments and the temporary closure of Charles Sturt University campuses has also limited the attendance of mobile donation units on campus.

“In line with government and health authority social distancing restrictions, we have observed these measures in blood donation centres and on the mobile units,” Mr Feist said.

“We’ve also implemented a number of measures at our donor centres to make sure that they’re safe and comply with all the social distancing guidelines, with the information about this on our website.

“Bathurst is the only Charles Sturt University campus town that does not have a blood donation centre, but students and staff who feel fit and well are able to donate at centres in Orange, Dubbo, Wagga Wagga, Albury-Wodonga, and Port Macquarie.