You can take 5 days paid off NHS work for IVF procedures, to create a new life.

But to save a life by donating Stem Cells to someone with Cancer (being cared for by the NHS) while working for the NHS, I have been told by HR to take a "Career Break" or Unpaid Leave.

The first step in Stem Cell donation is a GP appointment for bloods matching.

For the next step to donate Stem Cells a hospital appointment is needed to check your health as a donor- bloods, ECG, Chest Xray etc. This is at the donation centre which is not necessarily close to the Donors home. Mine is an hour drive each way.

A second hospital appointment is then needed at the donation centre to have the first GCSF injection, which stimulates stem cells, incase of reaction.

GCSF injections can then take place at home for the next few days. Side effects of GCSF injections can include bone/muscle pain, headaches and fatigue.

Collection of Stem Cells then takes up to two 5 hour days at the Donation Centre and driving immediately afterwards is discouraged. It is then encouraged to take a couple of days to recover.

Any time off relating to side effects is then recorded as Sick Leave and goes onto the workers Sick Leave record, despite this illness being induced to try to make someone else well. This could then cause the worker to trigger Sick Leave formal procedures. 

Not everyone works Part-Time or has a flexible job or has Annual Leave to use. Not everyone's Manager will be supportive in the process, because their focus is on the job and not the mental well-being of their workforce.

Surely we could encourage more people to register to Donate Stem Cells if the time off process was easier and was paid, not just within the NHS but nationally.