Pellissippi Blood Process

518 Words2 Pages

At the beginning of the semester I donated blood at the Pellissippi Blood Drive on the Magnolia campus. I was a little nervous because I had donated blood with Medic once before and they had a rough time finding a vein, so it wasn’t a pleasant. However, this time the lady knew that I was going to be a hard stick, so she took time, found the right vein, and it all went smoothly. After donating they give you a snack, t-shirt, and tons of coupons, which always makes giving blood a better experience. Before they begin the process, you must fill out paper work, they check your vitals, such as blood pressure and Iron levels, and they ask a lot of questions. They begin by asking if you have eaten anything today. One explanation as to why this question is asked, is to make sure that you do not pass out during the process. They also ask if you have been sick recently, if so then you cannot give blood because they do not want to risk getting another person sick. After the ask basic questions, they then start to ask more personal questions, such as if you have been to prison, drug and sexual history, and if you have traveled to other countries within the past year that could risk you getting a disease. The question process …show more content…

They send these to labs where they will then check your blood type and scan for viruses. Determining the donor and recipient’s blood type is extremely important because of the antibodies and antigens. If there is cross matching it can cause the recipient to reject the donor’s blood and form clots. They screen for viruses by looking for antibodies, as well. They look for antibodies that are on viruses that cause diseases such as HIV, Influenza, and any other virus that are a possible concern. If any of the screenings come back positive, then the blood cannot be used, so they discard it and they will notify the donator within twenty-four

More about Pellissippi Blood Process

Open Document