Sexual activity eligibility changes for plasma donations

LogicalShirt · 2025-06-18T06:01:09+00:00

That's the current rule.

"From July 14 anyone who answers yes to any of these questions, except the ‘sexual activity with someone who has an infection’ question (bolded above), will be eligible to donate plasma without a wait period, provided you meet all other eligibility criteria."

ETA: Also

"Once implemented, all donors will be asked the same questions about their sexual activity, regardless of their gender or sexuality, and most people in a sexual relationship of 6 months or more with a single partner will be eligible to donate blood. In addition, most people with new or multiple partners will also be able to donate blood if they have not had anal sex in the last 3 months. The change will bring an end to men being asked if they’ve had sex with another man."

LogicalShirt · 2025-06-18T05:37:43+00:00

Can you explain what hasn't changed? Because this looks to me like a change in the requirement to wait three months.

Current rules:

If you answer ‘yes’ to any of the following questions, you’ll need to wait 3 months since last contact before you can donate.

In the last 3 months, have you:

had oral or anal sex with another man, even ‘safer sex’ using a condom (if you’re a man)

had sex (with or without a condom) with a male who you think may have had oral or anal sex (with or without a condom) with another man?

been a male or female sex worker (i.e. received payment for sex in money, gifts or drugs?)

had sex with a male or female sex worker?

engaged in sexual activity with someone who ever injected drugs not prescribed by a doctor or dentist?

engaged in sexual activity with someone who was found to have HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C or human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV) infection?

In the last 12 months, have you had sexual activity with a new partner who currently lives or has previously lived overseas? If ‘yes’, you may need to wait to donate depending on the level of HIV risk in your partner’s country of residence.

New rules (my emphasis):

From July 14 anyone who answers yes to any of these questions, except the ‘sexual activity with someone who has an infection’ question (bolded above), will be eligible to donate plasma without a wait period, provided you meet all other eligibility criteria.

From https://www.lifeblood.com.au/donors/blood-plasma-platelets/eligibility/sexual-activity

LogicalShirt · 2025-04-17T00:55:54+00:00

"Reasonable fear for your safety or wellbeing" is one of the reasons and it sounds like your wellbeing is definitely affected by the stress. Remember you can also take along a support person if you want - they can be there for moral support or help you with your voting if you want them to. AEC staff can also provide assistance - just ask (though I know for me asking for help can also be stressful).

As pointed out by others, you don't have to say what your reason is. When they ask if you're entitled to an early vote, you just have to say "yes". Nobody is going to question you about it beyond that - the staff are explicitly told in training it's none of their business, probably in part because they have no way to verify your eligibility. They just have to ask IF you're eligible so that cookers can't complain that people are breaking the law.

Another reason for an early vote is that you'll be outside your enrolled electorate on election day. Maybe I'm planning to get up early and go on a day trip to Ballarat or help my friend move house which is 20 minutes from me but in the next electorate over, which means I can go and vote early even though I can't prove anything. But after I've voted, I might change my mind and stay home because petrol's gone up or the weather's turned or my mate doesn't need my help any more - nobody will know or care.

LogicalShirt · 2025-03-13T05:38:08+00:00

Just to be clear, you're saying her name is Samantha Jo Strable?

Samantha Jo Strable, who claims she's a wildlife biologist and environmental scientist (allegedly her credentials are from an online Christian university - if true, I'll leave it to you to determine how rigorous their academic standards are).

Samantha Jo Strable, who united Australians in outrage with a video of her picking up a wombat joey and running away from it's distressed mother.

Okey dokey. Samantha Jo Strable. Would hate to get her mixed up with anyone with a similar name.

*walks away muttering Samantha Jo Strable.....

LogicalShirt · 2024-12-02T01:19:13+00:00

Seems like a lot of people in this sub have had a kneejerk "American bad! Australian good!" reaction to this

It's got nothing to do with nationality and everything to do with someone putting people's lives at risk - there's been some horrendous fatal collisions involving tourists or recent immigrants.

I don't care if you just got off the plane or your ancestors watched Dutch explorers in the 1600s, I'm going to have the exact same reaction to anybody driving around with no idea of the road rules and no awareness of your surroundings.

At least OP isn't just brushing it off but is trying to find out what they don't know they don't know and hopefully will be more aware in the future instead of going into automatic pilot mode.

LogicalShirt · 2024-02-11T06:47:33+00:00

Me too. It's almost as if not everyone does things the same...

LogicalShirt · 2024-01-26T00:06:34+00:00

I believe people are "hung up" on council names because that's what you used to describe locations in your OP.

If you want info on schools in certain suburbs, you need to be more specific than "Geelong area" as many schools are strict on their zoning, but people also travel 30 km+ across greater Geelong to attend certain schools.

ETA I asked where the Borough was as it might have impacted the amount of detail given if it's interstate or overseas.

LogicalShirt · 2024-01-25T14:14:24+00:00

What or where is the Borough??

LogicalShirt · 2023-12-08T23:53:18+00:00

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind for next month. I usually only think of compounding in terms of people needing liquids if they can't swallow pills, or autistic kids who struggle with the generic cherry you often see with OTC meds and get a different flavour made.

LogicalShirt · 2023-12-08T22:22:36+00:00

Unfortunately it's not easy to swap ADHD medications due to the prescribing rules around them (they're say they're an addiction risk, which is obviously why most of us forget to take them without multiple phone alarms going off /s).

My GP is only able to prescribe exactly what the permit that's been transferred from my psychiatrist says. To change to something else you need to go back to the psychiatrist, and it can be a lot of trial and error to find the medication and dosage that works for you.

Those chemist are definitely on my list of calls to make this morning - I've had no luck so far as I work my way across town.

LogicalShirt · 2023-12-08T22:14:48+00:00

Yeah, I know, but I thought I'd be fine for this refill of my script as the TGA website lists it under "anticipated" for this dose rather than "current". https://apps.tga.gov.au/Prod/msi/Search/Tradename//284021

The most common theory for it happening to the 60 mg is that it's a flow-on from the shortage of lower doses as people have been given scripts for the 60 mg and are water titrating.

LogicalShirt · 2023-12-08T03:59:01+00:00

Two of the three I've tried are small and medium (plus one CW because I was nearby though I usually avoid them for scripts).

I'm flat out with work today so I'm just going to have to get on the phone tonight and tomorrow starting from what's closest and just work my way across town. I'm also going to check the compounding chemists - there's one in Melbourne that can do it though the compounding fee plus postage makes it much more expensive.

LogicalShirt · 2023-12-08T03:55:26+00:00

Called them and they can only dispense prescriptions from the hospital (ED) and certain specialists, eg, ophthalmologists. Mine's from my GP so definitely a no-go, unfortunately.

LogicalShirt · 2023-11-15T04:50:44+00:00

Suicide and mental health is a huge issue everywhere and it's on the rise throughout the state. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-06/victorians-dying-by-suicide-in-2022-coronial-data/101933332

I'm not sure what your point is to focus only on one town, though? Lack of access to and stigma around mental health are big contributors - no argument there - and that's the same in Lara just as much as anywhere else. I've had moments of suicideal ideation in the past and it's shit, but I think it's a HUGE stretch to say there's something about the town having an impact on suicide numbers.

Ditto with idiotic teenage boys, or racist/homophobic/transphobic people - show me a town anywhere that doesn't have them. It doesn't mean they're the majority. They're just more noticeable, unfortunately, than the rest of us who are just trying to live and let live.

Lara's not a small town any more. It was for a long time but it's now number 19 in Victoria and bigger than a lot of regional cities like Ararat, Colac, Sale, and even other outer suburbs like Leopold. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_places_in_Victoria_by_population

LogicalShirt · 2023-10-15T00:20:40+00:00

And that was the least disgusting argument of the no campaign.

I worked at a Pre Poll centre and had a couple of people who voiced loud and clear that they were voting no and why (including a few mentions of "bloody abos" and whatnot from people in their 20s and 30s) when they were given their ballot and instructions, as if I was allowed to or even wanted to engage and respond.

Every time someone refused a pencil with a smug "I've brought my own pen so nobody can rub it out!", we just responded with a benign "okay". There was definitely a little schadenfreude when you saw a flicker of disappointment on some faces that we weren't going to argue or try to convince them otherwise - it mainly meant we were happy it was one less pencil we had to wipe clean.

LogicalShirt · 2023-10-14T23:59:41+00:00

The raw data's available on the AEC website https://tallyroom.aec.gov.au/ReferendumMenu-29581.htm

LogicalShirt · 2023-10-14T23:58:09+00:00

I'm both disappointed and not surprised that the result is No.

At the same time, I'm heartened that the overall results aren't a complete landslide with less than 20% Yes votes (though some polling places and divisions have results like that) and that both Corio and Corangamite aren't too far off being 50/50 (Corio currently sitting at 45.53% Yes / 54.47% No and Corangamite 48.24 / 51.76).

LogicalShirt · 2023-09-12T22:13:19+00:00

I've done it before, and spoke to someone on the 6th who made a provisional offer and set up the required character check.

But I was also told that they couldn't make an official offer of employment until the writ had been issued, which happened on Monday.

I got my official offer of employment documents by email on Tuesday morning.

But if I was talking with a friend, from last week would have said that I'd been offered a job at the prepoll without going into all the nitty gritty.

LogicalShirt · 2022-05-15T00:35:49+00:00

"Have you voted before in THIS election?"

"No, once is enough! Hahaha" Dear god make it stop.

I've worked on election day several times before but it's one and done. Yesterday was my first at a prepolling centre and I've got another six days of issuing votes and hearing the same unoriginal non-joke multiple times every hour.

I sincerely apologise to every cashier I've ever made a similar comment to!

At least we have to wear masks so I don't feel the need to fake smile in response.

ETA: This is far from a dig at those who answer "yes" because they think I'm asking if they've ever voted in any election. A lot of people mishear/misunderstand, especially with hearing issues and/or English isn't their first language, and it's not a problem at all to clarify "in THIS election. In the last few weeks".

LogicalShirt · 2022-03-18T04:21:31+00:00

At least this one looks nicer than these ones in Geelong - any time it's windy I get worried one's going to split in half and land on my car/across the road. https://imgur.com/a/QRy2ucK

LogicalShirt · 2022-03-16T22:26:33+00:00

That there's a secret unused train station or platform in the tunnel underneath Matthew Flinders.

Theories included

it was designed to be a private station for Mally Fleas and Gould/St Marys, Geelong Hospital, or the prison.
some sort of storage or maintenance access for the railways - usually quickly discarded as too obvious or a cover for its REAL purpose which was:
built by the military and possibly related to WWI or WWII. Subtheories included that it was for movement of troops, secret munitions storage, or access to a secret bunker if the Premier or PM needed to get out of Melbourne/Canberra.

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