Hannah Ashley, 26, (left) credits blood donations to keeping her sister Emma, 28, (right) alive after being in and out of hospital with heart problems most of her life. Photo / Supplied
As part of New Zealand's first National Blood Donor Week kicking off tomorrow, health reporter Emma Russell speaks to two sisters - now a nurse and a paramedic - who know more than most how close life and death can be.
Hannah Ashley remembers being 6 and waking up in a panic as the person she loved most in the whole world, her older sister Emma, was being flown to hospital.
"I remember thinking why? What for? It always sends me into a panic mode of 'sh** what's happening, is this time going to be big or manageable'; it's the unknown that scares me," the now 26-year-old nurse told the Herald on Sunday.
Many times Hannah feared she might not see her sister again but, she said, she's grateful blood donations have helped keep Emma alive.
The sisters, who grew up on Waiheke Island and now both live and work in Auckland, wanted to share their story to encourage more New Zealanders to give blood.
"I literally wouldn't be here if it wasn't for blood donations," said Emma, now 28 and training to be a paramedic with St John.
Emma was born with a pulmonary embolism, which means blood from her heart struggles to get to her lungs because of blockages.
She had her first open-heart surgery when she was just 1 day old, spending her first two months after birth in hospital, and has since had six more operations.
In her lifetime, Emma said she has needed eight to 10 litres of blood to survive, which equates to about 20 donations.
Hannah said, "For the first 10 years of her life she was in and out of hospital for surgeries."
Emma added: "As a kid I was never allowed to play contact sport or do anything cardio related because they didn't know how my heart would function.
"I've also been told [by doctors] it's very dangerous for me to have children so basically I can never have children but I'm fortunate the surgeries have worked really well and my heart condition doesn't seem to affect me in a day-to-day sense anymore."
As the sister of a heart patient, Hannah said she became really protective of Emma.
"I love my sister more than anything in the whole world," she said.
"So when she couldn't do sports day because it would put a strain on her heart and kids are dumb and are bullies giving her a hard time about it and I would always be, like, 'don't talk bad about my sister'.
"I think we share a bond that's quite unique compared to other siblings because of what we've been through together."
Not only have blood donations meant the sisters still had each other to laugh with, and tease, but through their jobs they saw lives being saved every day thanks to the New Zealand Blood Service.
"We like to help people and care about how people are feeling, which is why we got into the jobs we're in. Emma is very maternal and loves babies which is why she works in NICU, so a bit different from me in a sense. I'm more fascinated with acute medicine."
The sisters also see the heartbreak of lives lost when they could have been saved and, Hannah said, she often finds herself convincing friends that giving blood "literally saves lives and is made so easy and quick".
There are about 110,000 donors in New Zealand, which is less than 4 per cent of the eligible population.
To raise awareness, the New Zealand Blood Service is launching its first National Blood Donor Week from Monday.
"Our theme for our inaugural year is 'We are Whānau', as we often refer to our donor community as a 'family of lifesavers' and, like a family, our donors and recipients are connected with a common thread – they understand the value of donating blood," a blood service spokesperson said.
"Not to mention that today 83 Kiwi families will have a loved one that needs lifesaving blood and plasma."
Emma's heart condition is now stable, but she requires yearly check-ups and will need more surgeries, which means more blood donations.
Hannah said, "People often think 'oh there's enough blood in the world, people always give blood' but there can never be enough. You also never know when you or your loved ones might need it.
"Giving blood can be the difference between life and death so why wouldn't you make the time?"
About blood donations in New Zealand
• There are about 110,000 donors in New Zealand, but that's still less than 4 per cent of the eligible population.
• New Zealand Blood Service needs about 38,000 more donors in the next 12 months to ensure it can continue to meet demand.
• Demand for plasma has increased 520 per cent since 2007 and is set to grow by another 52 per cent in the next five years.
• About 29,000 people receive lifesaving blood and plasma every year.