Thousands of medical students across Australia have flocked over the past two months to be part of one of the country’s biggest blood donation drives.

 President of the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA), Jasmine Davis stated: “Our annual drive, affectionately known as the Vampire Cup, is a time students can roll up their sleeves and save lives.”

The Vampire Cup started in 2008 and unites Australia’s medical students across 23 universities. The entirely student-driven campaign has seen outstanding results in 2022: with over 3000 donations, which equates to approximately 10,000 lives saved.

“We are so proud to see the incredible outcomes from this year’s campaign. As a medical student, it is empowering to know that we can save lives right now,” said Peumike Dissanayake, National Coordinator of the Vampire Cup.

As part of the eight-week campaign, universities are pitted against each other for the Vampire Cup Trophy, with family and friends encouraged to join the competition. This year, James Cook University took out the competition with a record-breaking 559 total donations over the two-month period. Monash University came second with 361 total donations, and Griffith University took third place with 276 donations.

“We are passionate about establishing a philosophy that everyone can help, regardless of their background, age, sex, race, sexuality, experience, profession or intelligence. A philosophy that will not only serve medical students well in their careers, but also as members of our society,” stated Mr Dissanayake.

With this week being National Blood Donor Week, it is critical to acknowledge the vital role donors have in society. According to Lifeblood, who partners with AMSA to record donations, a blood donation is needed every 18 seconds, with almost a third of Australians needing blood in their lifetime.[1]

“In a year when one in two people were cancelling their regular donations, we could not be prouder of the effort medical students across the country went to, to come together, mobilise and make such a meaningful impact,” said Ms Davis.[2]

In September, AMSA is looking forward to encouraging students to sign- up to the bone marrow donor registry.

AMSA is the peak representative body for Australia’s 17,000 medical students.

References

1. https://www.lifeblood.com.au/news-and-stories/vital-reads/national-blood-donor-week-2022
2. https://cqtoday.com.au/news/2022/06/06/lifeblood-calls-for-winter-donors/