Resource | What is your blood type?

Have you ever wondered about the science behind different blood types?

🩸 Luckily, we have a video covering this health topic available on the Auslan Resource Library!

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Visual description of the thumbnail:
Title reads “Auslan Information Resource Hub: What is your blood type?” and shows a person with their hair pulled back in a bun signing the letter “A” as in blood type A. It includes a note “Produced by Deaf Connect” and the background is a light, abstract pattern.

Transcript:
[Presenter is standing against a plain grey background and wearing a black professional shirt. On the right side of the screen, there are graphics relating to the topics being discussed.] Blood. We all have blood in our bodies. You might see blood as just this red thing that appears when you have a cut, but blood is so much more than that. And this video will guide you in learning more about blood and your blood type.
If you were to look at your blood under a microscope, it would show hundreds of tiny blood cells. Your blood can be used to check your overall health, the presence of any sickness, and genetic conditions. All of this valuable information from your blood, the health information your blood can provide is incredible. It is so important to think about how you take care of your body and the health of your blood.
Do you know what your blood type is? There are four major blood types – A, B, O, and AB. Within that there are eight varied blood types – A+ and A-, B+ and B-, O+ and O-, and AB+ and AB-. When looking at blood under the microscope, A positive (A+) and A negative (A-) look slightly different but are still together under blood group A and the same difference apply for the other combinations.
For each blood type there are specific ways in which blood types are matched for safe donation and transfusion. See, this graphic at the top is a blood donor and at the bottom is the blood recipient. [The right side of the screen displays a chart of which blood type donors are compatible with which blood type receivers.] Now, let’s say my blood type is blood type A following the graphic. My blood can only be given to someone who has blood Type A or blood type AB. Blood type B, following the graphic, their blood can only be given to someone with blood type AB. Blood type O. People say – blood type O can provide blood to anyone. You can see that here. Blood type AB [can only be given to another AB]. I hope that helps you understand as a blood donor which blood types you can be matched with.
For a blood recipient who is in need of a donation, there are only certain types of blood a person can accept. Say my blood is blood type A and I’m in need of a transfusion. These are the only blood types I can accept. [Blood types A and O]. Blood type B [can only accept from O]. [Blood type] O [can only accept from O]. [Blood type] AB [can accept from all blood types]. So as you can see, there are some blood types that can receive blood from all of the blood types, whereas others are limited to only receiving blood from one single blood type. It’s interesting looking as a donor which blood types you can give blood to. The on the other hand, as a blood recipient, which blood types you can receive blood from. And as you’ve seen, it’s not the same. Remember to look at the donor and then the recipient to know which combinations match. Work out where your blood type sits and what blood types you can donate blood to, and which blood types you can accept blood from.
This information is important because here in Australia and overseas there is a demand for blood. You may be wondering why someone would need a blood transfusion. This could happen from being involved in a serious accident like a car accident or a workplace accident, like a severe laceration from a fall or accident with a tool. Imagine severe and ongoing bleeding, which results in a drastic reduction of blood in your body, and you urgently need that blood topped up, due to the severe blood loss. Another reason might be pregnant mother, who has emergency cesarean and might have significant blood loss and need this lost blood replaced. Cancer patients, their blood cells die due to the cancer and they need transfusions of healthy blood in replacement. Another reason is that premature babies who might not have enough blood to allow their bodies to continue to develop and grow. These babies need blood transfusions to provide them with more blood. They are just a few examples, but there are many more. Ultimately, in any situation where there is a considerable loss of blood. Someone may need a blood transfusion and rely on the donation of blood from another person.
It is worth looking into what blood type you have. You may then wonder why you have that particular blood type. Well, it is all dependent on the blood type of your biological parents. For example, if a mother has blood type A and a father has blood type B, their child will have blood type AB. A and O would mean blood type A, O and O would mean blood type O, O and B would mean blood type AB. So your blood type has come from the combination of the blood types of your biological parents.