Foo - donating blood

I'm not sure why everyone doesn't do it. I went tonight and start to finish it took under a half hour and they gave me some juice and cookies for my trouble. I've been a long member of the gallon club and I'm good for bleeding 4 times a year. I'm gonna challenge myself and see if I can make it the full 6 times in the coming 12 months.

Anyone else a donor?

I would, but I have this thing with needles.

Anyone else a donor?

I would sell my blood instead of donating. After all, the hospital charges patients when they use it. Seriously, my wife works at a plasma center. Clients get $25 each time they give plasma.

my kind does not have "blood" as you know it.

Yay for Gallon Club members!

HIGH FIVE!!!

:D

Yes, platelet pheresis donor for many years. Lay on a comfy couch for an hour or so, and talk with friendly nurses who bring you cookies and chocolate milk. All this, and it's still a good deed!

I would sell my blood instead of donating. After all, the hospital charges patients when they use it. Seriously, my wife works at a plasma center. Clients get $25 each time they give plasma.

I haven't given plasma yet, but I'm thinking I may at some point. The place tonight had a nice fleece for third time plasma donors.

I'm OK with the hospital charging for my blood, it appeals to the finance geek in me; if the blood stays in my body, no money is exchanged. If I donate it, my blood is helping to give jobs to people at the blood center and the hospital and who knows what else. It's pretty good when you can help the economy without having to buy anything or do too much (other than drink juice and eat some cookies).

Yay for Gallon Club members!

HIGH FIVE!!!

:D

happily returns high five :)

I haven't donated in two or three years. I might do it if the blood mobile was right there and the spirit moved me, but I've not been compelled enough to make a special trip to do it.

I'm not sure why everyone doesn't do it.

This is a ridiculous statement.



I don't give blood because:

1. I hate needles in that part of my arm. They can take it from the outside, but noooo, always the sensitive area.

2. I use my blood to the fullest extent of the word "use".

3. Cost/benefit ratio isn't worth it to me. (spare me the moral argument. If you know me in the slightest, you should know that I have absolutely no morals)

4. I have teH Claghonosyphaherpalaids. Always.

If karma strikes me down and I end up needing blood, you can recognize the irony and lol.

This is a ridiculous statement.



I don't give blood because:

1. I hate needles in that part of my arm. They can take it from the outside, but noooo, always the sensitive area.

2. I use my blood to the fullest extent of the word "use".

3. Cost/benefit ratio isn't worth it to me. (spare me the moral argument. If you know me in the slightest, you should know that I have absolutely no morals)

4. I have teH Claghonosyphaherpalaids. Always.

If karma strikes me down and I end up needing blood, you can recognize the irony and lol.
I don't believe he was making a moral judgement of people who don't donate. :rolleyes:
Simmer down, you whiny disease bag.:p

Because the Red Cross and its bloodmobiles are not safe for latex allergic people to even enter. :(

I donate every three months.

I was once very close to someone who needed regular blood transfusions so while I hate needles, I'll put up with the discomfort to save lives.

I hit the six gallon mark last Friday.
I've tried giving platelets because they really want them but the machine just doesn't like me.:(

I would sell my blood instead of donating. After all, the hospital charges patients when they use it. Seriously, my wife works at a plasma center. Clients get $25 each time they give plasma.

Yeah, hospitals just make a ton of money in the blood business, lemme tell ya. All that disease screening, type and cross matching, leukopore filtering and/or irradiating if it's necessary, tight administrative control to ensure nobody gets the wrong blood and dies, staffing a blood bank 24 hours a day, having the blood product expire if it's not used...

You can always tell who's in charge of the blood bank because he/she's got the Bentley parked in the garage. :rolleyes:

I'm a frequent flier. I've been doing the double-red donations lately. Takes a little longer, well, a lot longer, but the needle is smaller and you give half as often. I actually had to take a break for a couple of months. I was OK as far as time between donations, but there's a limit on units in a rolling calendar year that I had pushed against.

I'm O- and CMV- (http://www.cdc.gov/cmv/facts.htm), so the vampires harass me constantly.

Well, thanks to people who do all this donating. There's nothing worse than running out of blood when you really need it, and sitting there with your hands tied while someone scrambles around town looking for the unit of blood that you need. Not a good feeling.

I haven't in a long time since I have consistently gotten ill a few days prior to the bloodmobile showing up at work.

Not on purpose, it just seems that they time this stuff to happen together "Let's get Cat sick.....YEAH!!!!!" :(

They won't let me. I'd like to but I just can't. Malaria zones.

4 Quarters donor with Carter. I need to start selling the stuff to pay for my record upgrade, though.

I don't give blood anymore because everytime I have I've gotten dizzy and ill.
I must need all of mine.

Used to donate every time I was eligible, now my crit is too low every. single. time. :(

Yeah, hospitals just make a ton of money in the blood business, lemme tell ya. All that disease screening, type and cross matching, leukopore filtering and/or irradiating if it's necessary, tight administrative control to ensure nobody gets the wrong blood and dies, staffing a blood bank 24 hours a day, having the blood product expire if it's not used...

You can always tell who's in charge of the blood bank because he/she's got the Bentley parked in the garage. :rolleyes:

Please, don't try and elicit any sympathy from me for the the healthcare/insurance consortium. They charge for their services and I charge for mine.

Well, thanks to people who do all this donating. There's nothing worse than running out of blood when you really need it, and sitting there with your hands tied while someone scrambles around town looking for the unit of blood that you need. Not a good feeling.

If they paid for blood instead of waiting for donations there may not be a shortage.

>$215/pint.


Not bad for a partially renewable resource.

The problem with paying for blood products is that people who engage in high risk activities (i.e. IV drug use) may sell their blood. This is fine so long as they don't have HCV of HIV or any number of other diseases that are blood born. If people with assorted infections do start trying to sell their blood, it could seriously slow down the screening process and reduce the resources available to the collection agencies, since someone would have to pay the sellers. By keeping a donation system based on altruistic intentions of helping one's fellow human, you hopefully bypass the majority of the problems above.

Having said all that, I haven't donated in several years. The last few times that I did, the has phlebotomist missed my veins and dug around with the needle trying to get it in the right spot. I've ended up feeling ill and having massive bruises on my arm.

If they paid for blood instead of waiting for donations there may not be a shortage.

if they did pay for blood it would be highly likely that people who engage in high risk activities (iv drug use etc) would be quick to sell it, as they have not much else to offer and usually have a big need for cash. The couple of bucks they'd offer me for giving wouldn't make any change in my life and I'm happier knowing the blood supply hasn't been comprimised.

Can't donate...had hepatitis (sp?) when I was younger. They wont except MV's blood :(

if they did pay for blood it would be highly likely that people who engage in high risk activities (iv drug use etc) would be quick to sell it, as they have not much else to offer and usually have a big need for cash. The couple of bucks they'd offer me for giving wouldn't make any change in my life and I'm happier knowing the blood supply hasn't been comprimised.

This is a decent point but all they need to do is a thorough screening and testing. The plasma centers that I know of are mostly located in college towns and low income areas, places that have people who engage in high-risk activities. No problem, they just test the stuff.

Never donated, though I would if I had the opportunity. Seems like every time there is a blood drive, I have some kind of sporting event or practice and I would rather keep all my blood. I have volunteered to help at a blood drive though.

all they need to do is a thorough screening and testing


Agreed, but if they wind up throwing away half the take because it was compromised, I'm not sure the system would work any better than the current set up. One of the pitfalls of capitalism is that it gets people thinking that a market is the best solution for every problem. In an instance like blood donations we're probably better off counting on the benevolence of a few good folks (who are presumably low risk types) who feel compelled to give, rather than creating a market where we buy blood from the masses.

And lets not forget that buying blood would increase the per-unit cost to the patient, which is presumably the problem everyone had with it in the first place.

I'm not trying to win sympathy for the system or anything. If the system is that bad I'm sure you could head downtown and pay a junkie 50 bucks for an unscreened, untyped, uncrossmatched unit of blood and take your chances. Any takers?

I'm not saying that the cost of business can't be brought down, but blood banking is anything but a profitable venture for anyone.

Because the Red Cross and its bloodmobiles are not safe for latex allergic people to even enter. :(
Please qualify your statement.

The plasma centers that I know of are mostly located in college towns and low income areas, places that have people who engage in high-risk activities.


True for me as well. I'd imagine this has more to do with blood centers not being tremendously profitable places and shopping the lowest available rents and counting on donors to drive to them or to give at off site drives. I don't mind driving 20 minutes to my blood center because I'm going only every so often and I don't expect my donation to be as convenient as picking up a gallon of milk on my ride home from work.

Not interested in providing my SSN to give blood.

Are you giving blood through the IRS??? I've donated blood for years and don't ever recall being asked for my SSN.

Not interested in providing my SSN to give blood.

I'm not sure I understand this. Unless if you've been living under a rock, you've most likely provided your SSN to someone over the last year. It would be impossible to buy a house or a car or an insurance policy, or even to get a job, without handing it over.

If you're afraid your personal information will be compromised, I'd have a hard time believing the folks in the health care field are any less trustworthy than those, lets say, at a car dealer.

Are you giving blood through the IRS??? I've donated blood for years and don't ever recall being asked for my SSN.

I was thinking that as well, but the bloodcenter already has all my info on file, so I forget what I originally gave them, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't my SSN

I'm not sure why everyone doesn't do it. I went tonight and start to finish it took under a half hour and they gave me some juice and cookies for my trouble. I've been a long member of the gallon club and I'm good for bleeding 4 times a year. I'm gonna challenge myself and see if I can make it the full 6 times in the coming 12 months.

Anyone else a donor?

Perhaps beacuse the last 2 (and likely last 2 ever) times I went to donate it took 2 hours hours for the first and for the second they called to remind me on thursday (for a saturday morning appt) when they had a strike that started on Monday. I got there and they would not be ready to start for 2 hours.

Nope I'm done.

Oh and when they called to try again they started by thanking me for the 19 units I've donated and pointed out I'm CMV negative so my blood can be given to high risk recipients. But if they don't give a D@mn about my time forget it.

I'm not sure why everyone doesn't do it. I went tonight and start to finish it took under a half hour and they gave me some juice and cookies for my trouble. I've been a long member of the gallon club and I'm good for bleeding 4 times a year. I'm gonna challenge myself and see if I can make it the full 6 times in the coming 12 months.

Anyone else a donor?

There was a Red Cross truck coming to my job every few month and I was regular donor - gave blood at least 12 times a pint.
But than they changed rules and they will not accept my blood anymore:( (I lived overseas after some year) and that was it. I am still bloody p!$$%d off about it.

I donate when we have blood drives. The blood bank has even called me up to donate since I'm O negative.

Are you giving blood through the IRS??? I've donated blood for years and don't ever recall being asked for my SSN.

IRS already has my SSN :). Red Cross here at work blood drives requires SSN. Just because some people have it doesn't mean I want everyone to have it.

I used to donate the maximum number of times every year. My employer would even give us an extra vacation day if we did. But since the Red Cross upped its hematocrit requirments, I no longer qualify. I tried for a year to donate but always missed the mark. I don't bother now.

The other issue many people have is the absolutely horrific skills of the people doing the blood draws. Sorry folks, but you really need to find somewhere else to practice your brand new phlebotomy skills. All those butchers do is drive people away.

The other issue many people have is the absolutely horrific skills of the people doing the blood draws. Sorry folks, but you really need to find somewhere else to practice your brand new phlebotomy skills. All those butchers do is drive people away.


No kidding. That's why I gave up doing it.

I'm not sure why everyone doesn't do it.

Like others, I sense judgement in there in a holier than thou sort of way.

edit: This pretty much makes the judgement very clear:


counting on the benevolence of a few good folks

Others don't for a myriad of reasons. Some good, some bad. My wife can't because she's a T1 Diabetic. Until very recently, I haven't been able to because of my flight status in the military. Since then, I don't know... I just haven't.

Others may feel it's wrong, may be against their beliefs, maybe simply selfish. There's probably as many reasons for not doing it as there are for doing it; maybe more!

I'm not an organ donor, either. Add that to my faults.

The other issue many people have is the absolutely horrific skills of the people doing the blood draws. Sorry folks, but you really need to find somewhere else to practice your brand new phlebotomy skills. All those butchers do is drive people away.

You speak the truth here. I used to give every 52 days until a newbie re-stuck me so many times we had to cancel the donation. I left the donation center frustrated and bruised. I didn't go back for over a year, but I learned to take note of and make friends with the technicians that performed the best draws. Now whenever I go, I only donate under the steady hand of the few I approve of.

Please qualify your statement.
It depends on the specific situation. Some bloodmobiles are still using powdered latex gloves. Even if they use another glove to actually touch me, my airway closes right up after about 2 minutes. I've asked, but for some reason, they won't do it outside. After 15 years of this allergy, I am sensitive enough that the protein shed by unpowdered gloves begins to cause breathing problems for me after about 15 minutes. There are bloodmobiles with no latex gloves. However, the 5 of those I entered must not have been thoroughly cleaned since the changeover because my face was turning its usual charming purple and I started wheezing after 5 minutes. It's like playing Russian Roulette everytime I try to donate blood.

The Red Cross building here in Portland is an absolute deathtrap for me. Their ventilation system must be full of the dust. I've written letter after letter. They also are unable to tell me if the medical supplies they use are free of natural rubber latex. I guess they have plenty of O positive blood to go around, because I've been regularly been told that that just isn't a priority for them. Oh, well. I'm not about to pay $200 to donate blood. (My copay for an ER visit.)

I am most envious of my aunt who is a UCLA retiree. They have their own blood donation facility, and I went with her when she donated after they confirmed the facility is safe for the latex allergic. They were right, too. 45 minutes in there, and not even a touch of pink on my face! All of the major hospitals in Portland are safe for me, but none of them have blood donation programs. It's kind of sad to have been the one to break a 45 year family tradition of all the adults giving blood regularly.

...I'm not an organ donor, either...

People should be able to sell their organs and suicide should be legal.

suicide should be legal.


It's not?

What will they do? Fine me? Put me in jail? :D