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I'm A+, donated blood a few times, then stopped after I developed epilepsy. I was told I couldn't donate, then several years after my diagnosis, I noticed the restrictions eased and donated a couple of times again. Soon after that, the blood center began hounding me incessantly to donate, donate, donate. They would call me EVERY DAY hitting me up to donate, always from different phone numbers so I couldn't block them with Mr. Number. They were so harassing I quit donating again, I can't believe they don't realize such a campaign will make people stop donating, rather than encourage them.
Be sure to check whether meds you're on affect your ability to donate, and take your lists of meds when you go to donate. I'm on coumadin, so it's a no go for me. This page gives the list of meds that affect donation:
Aspirin, no waiting period for donating whole blood. However you must wait 2 days (3 days if you donate in New York State) after taking aspirin or any medication containing aspirin before donating platelets by apheresis.
it really makes no difference anymore for hiv, every blood donation is given the same tests for infectious agents
whether they are gay or not, they run the same things so a "gay" unit cost no more than a "straight" unit... unless you think getting fewer units in lowers the cost for the blood center, but they care more about having a stocked inventory than the cost of running those tests.
low body weig, that is to protect the donator... you going to transfuse them back their blood after becoming anemic?
aspirin inhibits platelet functions permanently... why donate non-functioning platelets when they need functioning ones?
Every donation is tested for HIV (and certain other viruses). However, there is a time lag between infection and a positive test. The concern is that the test will not pick up a very recent infection.
My comment concerning weight was to point out that being gay is not the only reason someone might be deferred from donating. Another example is people who traveled to areas where mad cow disease was found: people who lived in the UK for six months or more from 1980–1996.
As has already been posted, if you are on aspirin the platelets are just discarded. You can still donate because the other components are still valuable.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newtovenice
Which is why I do not donate.
The profits are insane and they *trick* people into donating by congratulating them on their *good deed*. There's a reason that they target high schools. Get the kids trained early to donate for free.
If it's a good deed to donate they should give the products to people who need it FOR FREE also.
You would deny people lifesaving transfusion of blood products because you think it is wrong for the people who collect and process the donation to charge a fee to the hospitals that actually administer it? The Red Cross does not charge patients anything; hospitals pass the cost on to the patient. Why shouldn't they?
The Red Cross has paid employees. The folks that stick your arm are not volunteers; they are compensated professionals. What about all the supplies used during the collection process? The refrigeration and safeguards need to transport the collections safely? The cost of separating the various fractions? The testing done to determine blood type and exclude infections? Do you really expect all of that to be done "FOR FREE"? The people who do all of that are also not volunteers. They have to be paid.
The profits are "insane"? Do you know what they actually are?
I've had mono three times. Would I consistently have too much EBV?
No, you can still donate. And these days most blood centers are leukoreducing the blood (which removes the white cells, which are the cells that carry CMV and EBV), so it's simply not much of a problem any more. (White cells can cause problems besides passing on CMV or EBV infections, so there are plenty of good reasons to remove them from donated blood apart from reducing the infection risk.)
It's interesting to note the industry behind blood donations, including the Red Cross. We donate for free, and they profit immensely. That's why over the years there have been battles over controlling blood collection.
Whole blood is used as is, after testing of course, but is also fractionated into various parts, like packed RBC, albumin, platelets, clotting factors and many more. That's where the money is.
The marketing effort has been superb, convincing us to donate for free as a supposed altruistic act, when in truth, we're providing organizations with a valuable starting material. The fact that these orgs are non-profits does not mean they're not money driven. It mostly means they operate under a different part of the tax code.
Do you consider $0 to $10 per pint an "immense" profit?
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Originally Posted by VTsnowbird
I donate often. My late DH used a lot of packed RBC during chemo. I can give back so I do.
My son received both red cells and platelets during his cancer chemo. I am paying it forward, too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by biscuitmom
Sometimes there's a reason for restrictions. I donated when I weighed approx. 115 lbs and was nursing twins and passed out cold. No one warned me of the risk.
Now I'm 69 yo, a healthy weight and have mostly healthy markers but will think twice about ever donating again.
No guilt because I donated for decades.
Thanks for your donations!
You could do it again and ask to be allowed to rest lying down longer afterwards.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigbear99
Surgery these days rarely requires blood, even bypass surgery for priming the pump (so to speak). Other surgeries use blood scavenging techniques, where bleeding blood is cleaned up and put back in!
Techniques for controlling bleeding have improved markedly in the last few decades, including agents that I worked on earlier in my career. Yes, severe accidents with copious bleeding may need blood, but how common are those? How many folks reading here have direct experience?
Seems to me the industry behind blood collection (which I had professional dealings with in the past) uses scare tactics in order to increase their supply. The NYT published an article on this way back in 1991.
Another shabby practice to me is pre-donating blood for a surgery that rarely needs whole blood. Guess what happens to the left-overs?
Do not forget, the blood business is in fact a business, and a profitable one. ARC, the biggest collector/processor/supplier in the USA makes tens of millions off blood donations each year. There's nothing wrong with that as long as the money goes into programs, which it apparently does (notwithstanding occasional scandals regarding salaries and such...), but note that it's management is well paid. According to its IRS filing, 6 execs make over $500,000 per year.
Blood scavenging is not applicable in all circumstances.
The need for blood is not stable. There may be times when more is needed, times when less is. If the supply needs to be restocked, why is it wrong to ask for donations?
Autologous blood donation is often patient driven. If it is not used, it is destroyed, because someone who donates for himself may have risk factors that preclude using his blood for someone else.
Charity Navigators gives the ARC overall about 3.5 stars out of 4 and lists four execs with salaries of $600 K or more. I am not a fan of big exec salaries, but I suspect these are in line with what is made by those in the for profit sector.
Every donation is tested for HIV (and certain other viruses). However, there is a time lag between infection and a positive test. The concern is that the test will not pick up a very recent infection.
My comment concerning weight was to point out that being gay is not the only reason someone might be deferred from donating. Another example is people who traveled to areas where mad cow disease was found: people who lived in the UK for six months or more from 1980–1996.
As has already been posted, if you are on aspirin the platelets are just discarded. You can still donate because the other components are still valuable.
You would deny people lifesaving transfusion of blood products because you think it is wrong for the people who collect and process the donation to charge a fee to the hospitals that actually administer it? The Red Cross does not charge patients anything; hospitals pass the cost on to the patient. Why shouldn't they?
The Red Cross has paid employees. The folks that stick your arm are not volunteers; they are compensated professionals. What about all the supplies used during the collection process? The refrigeration and safeguards need to transport the collections safely? The cost of separating the various fractions? The testing done to determine blood type and exclude infections? Do you really expect all of that to be done "FOR FREE"? The people who do all of that are also not volunteers. They have to be paid.
The profits are "insane"? Do you know what they actually are?
One response to the question of profit indicates about $10 per pint; another estimates that cost and revenue about break even.
Point out where I said I would deny anyone lifesaving treatment. I can wait .... tick tock tick tock ... ah, I'll relent. NEVER SAID THAT.
Moving on ...
It's a $4.5 BILLION business of which the Red Cross holds 44% of the market. Since 2003, the Red Cross has been fined $46 million from the FDA for not meeting blood safety laws, including mismanaging certain blood products and violating best manufacturing practices.
While the Red Cross is known for disaster services, its main business is actually collecting and selling blood. Last year, the charity took in $2 billion from the blood operation.
So, yeah. Very profitable.
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