Vicky McGillivray wasn’t well, wasn’t getting better and wasn’t able to get an appointment with a GP overnight — and she wanted all that to change.
The 50-year-old human dynamo from Gunbower — where, among other things, she is president of the Gunbower Racing Club and working overtime for the club’s first cup meeting since 2019 following COVID-19 and flooding — could not keep going the way she was.
After months of inexplicable fatigue and breathlessness playing havoc with her quality of life, it took appointments with three doctors and blood tests before someone finally pinned it down.
Vicky was anaemic.
She initially put it all down to her chronic sinus issues but said when the antibiotics prescribed for that did not improve her other symptoms, she knew further investigations were required.
As soon as she could get to see a GP.
Vicky described the frustration of seeing each new doctor, leaving her feeling as though she had to “start from scratch again”, but was happy and relieved when someone put a name to the problem.
She said the diagnosis wasn’t a total surprise — she previously had an episode of anaemia in her 20s, but that had been relieved with iron tablets.
Anaemia is a condition where the blood doesn’t have enough healthy red blood cells.
There are a number of causes, generally related to an increased loss of red cells due to blood loss or destruction of red cells or issues with the production of red cells, including not enough or abnormal red cells.
Each day, a healthy body releases millions of red cells from the bone marrow, where they are produced, replacing the old ones, which have a life span of 120 days.
Iron is essential in making haemoglobin, a protein in red cells, which helps transport and deliver oxygen from the lungs to the tissues — explaining Vicky’s shortness of breath and fatigue.
Fortunately, Vicky has access to Echuca Regional Health blood nurse Kerry Schroder and the Cancer and Wellness Centre, where she had her first blood transfusion.
As a blood recipient, Vicky said she was incredibly grateful someone had willingly given up their time and blood — and had recently considered donating blood herself.
She talked about being anxious going into the procedure. Still, she trusted the health professionals looking after her and was hopeful it would improve how she was feeling.
Vicky described the new Cancer and Wellness Centre as “beautiful”, noting how lucky we were to have such wonderful facilities in our community.
She added the staff there had been helpful with explaining everything involved even before she came in for her appointment — right down to where to park and how long the process would take.
Vicky said simple things such as having reserved car parks for patients close to the building made her patient journey that little bit easier.
And having spent more than five hours having the transfusion, she had “very fond” memories of the attentive staff and the cups of tea and snacks they provided.
Kerry said it had been a great experience to sit down with one of the centre’s patients and hear their feedback, “and we wish Vicky all the best with her recovery”.
“Like Vicky, one in three people in Echuca will need blood during their lives, and that blood may not be there at the crucial moment,” Kerry said.
“The demand for blood is growing, and our generous current donors can’t do it alone. Australia needs a new blood donor every four minutes.
“So we are hoping our amazing locals will help spread the word as we have the Echuca Mobile Blood Donor Centre rolling into town from October 2 to 27, and we need as many people as possible to book a time and donate some blood.”
For more information about blood transfusions, go to lifeblood.com.au/patients
Health professionals can go to lifeblood.com.au/health-professionals