14 June, 2016. 16:45
ERROL PARKER | Editor-at-large | Contact
A TWENTY-EIGHT YEAR OLD interior designer is picking up the pieces today after he got a bit carried away with some bloke last night.
Matthew Dollarhyde, up until now, has been a keen donator of blood. His AB- blood type is especially rare.
“Once I found out I was AB- after a car accident, the doctors at the hospital suggested that I donate blood whenever possible because the stocks of it are quite low with it being rare,” he said.
“So I started.”
That was over five years ago, but now he’s unsure if he’s allowed to keep on donating after locking lips with a former colleague of his in an eastern Sydney nightspot over the long weekend.
As if to defend his actions, the Canberra-native said he “just kinda made out with” fellow 28-year-old textile importer Gavin Greasley, who unfortunately for Dollarhyde, is a gay man.
“We were saying goodbye, looking pensively into each other’s eyes. Next thing I know, his tongue is in my mouth and he’s running his fingers through my hair. I was shocked and everything, but I kinda liked,” he said.
“But now I’m worried I can’t donate blood anymore. Can I? I know gay people aren’t allowed to donate blood… but if I’ve done some gay shit in the past, does that count me out?”
A blood pathogen expert from the CSIRO has said that yes, if you’ve done some gay shit with your mates in the past, you cannot legally donate blood – and it’s a federal offence to lie on the form, too.
Professor Alistair Caudwell agrees that even the slightest sexual slip-up can render somebody unable to give a life-saving blood donation.
“Yeah look mate, objections to this law will be noted, but we can’t really take a chance on gay blood at the moment. Although we screen every donation for viruses and whatnot, there might be a chance that we’d miss something,”
“Maybe on a later date we can talk about this, I’m about to be late for my three o’clock.”
