A few weeks ago someone from Red Cross called and asked if I wanted to donate blood again. I had been waiting for the super-local one that I can walk to, but I figured why not go to the one a few miles away! Thinking about my readers, I asked my sister if she would tagalong and take pictures. I thought it might be a good chance to show people who have never given blood before exactly what the process entails. To be eligible, you must be at least 17 or 16 years of age (depends on state), weigh at least 110 pounds, and meet a few other requirements.


Last time I went the lines were terrible even though I had an appointment. This time I made the appointment for the earliest slot they had and there was no backup at all. I arrived with my positive ID (required) and was given a sheet to read with information about donating blood. I was also given a short survey asking questions such as “How tall are you?” and “Are you pregnant?”
After I finished I was given a number and was told to wait in the waiting area they had set up. Due to scheduling ahead, as I said, the wait was minimal. Here I am, looking a bit overhappy that someone is going to stick me with a needle in a few minutes!

Next the nurse called me over and she took a sample of blood from my finger for an iron test, stuck a disposable thermometer under my tongue, took my pulse and blood pressure. After a short questioning, she told me to wait in a chair near the beds. There was no wait though, a nurse called me over almost before I could sit down. This nurse double checked my stats (as written on my report thingy that they printed out from their database, as I’ve dontated before) and asked me if I was allergic to iodine.

I relaved on the bed while she wiped my arm with iodine. Then she gave me a small white tube to hold and put a blood pressure cuff on my upper arm. She asked me to squeeze the tube and then she inserted the needle. It was practically painless - hardly more than a mosquito bite. She also scanned the barcodes on 5 or 6 small vials - blood to be tested for certain diseases.

      Now Now the actual blood donation was occuring, my blood draining to a small bag attached to the bed. The nurse instructed me to squeeze the tube every 5 seconds or so. Last time I was told this is only to ensure circulation remains satisfactory. I raised my head once to look and one of the nurses said I ought to keep it down. I assume the elevation might have made me lightheaded. I was still able to spy on the process though, by turning my head and looking down.

After the donation was finished another lady came over and asked me how I was feeling. She detached the bag, scanned the barcodes on the vials once more and started to fill them. I was surprised how fast they filled up and she explained that they have a little bit of vacuum. I didn’t just give blood, they sucked it out of me! She then removed the needle in my arm, took off the blood pressure cuff, put a piece of gauze where the needle had been, and asked me to raise my arm straight up and apply pressure to the gauze.

I did that for probably 2 minutes and then she took a look. It was still leaking, though only slightly, so she asked me to do it another minute. After this I was given a pink sheet of paper with call back info (in case I had questions, or discovered I was HIV positive), and sent to “the canteen.” The canteen consisted of a table with some bags of snacks and a guy behind the table giving out snacks, water (or juice) and free tee shirts.

The only thing left to do was compare nutritional value between Oreos and Chips Ahoy! I found, surprisingly enough, that Oreos no longer contain hydrogenation. The ingredient I found on the package most likely to be the filling was highly oleic canola oil. But back to blood donation!


I left feeling fine and the greatest pain from the whole experience was ripping off one side of the bandage to show my little brother the hole they took the blood out of. Talk about the senstivity of the nerves located near you hair roots!

Here is a list of interesting facts on donating blood from Blood Center: (you can read even more here!)

20 Quick Facts About Donating Blood

A person can donate blood every 56 days.

One donation of whole blood can help up to three different patients.

Every three seconds, someone in the U.S. needs a blood transfusion.

Over four million American lives are saved each year by blood transfusions.

Approximately 60 percent of the population is eligible to donate, but less than five percent of those able actually do so.

Over 30,000 pints of blood are used each day in the U.S.

An accident victim can use 50 units of blood and an organ transplant patient can use more that 100 units of blood.

One out of every ten hospital patients needs blood.

Nearly 300 units of blood must be collected each week to meet Scott & White’s needs.

Whole blood cannot be made synthetically; healthy people are the only source.

All blood types are needed; often the common blood types are the most frequently transfused.

The average adult body has between 10 and 12 pints of blood. After one pint is donated, the body replaces the fluid portion within 24 hours, the platelets within two days and the red blood cells within 56 days.

Red cells are usable for 42 days and platelets are only usable for five days.

One pint of blood is roughly the equivalent of one pint.

There are four main blood types: A, AB, B, and O.

AB is the universal recipient, and O negative is the universal donor.

The actual blood donation usually takes less than ten minutes.

A person cannot contract HIV/AIDS or any other infectious disease from donating blood.

A person could optimally donate up to six or seven times per year.

If you are able, please consider donating blood. It’s practically painless and all in all, it’s kind of fun. I even got a package of oreos out of the whole deal :D

Posted by Bonnie under health, statistics