SIS Blood Drive

Give life. Give blood.

Miguel Bonilla 10/31/2013

Through the following, I will be addressing the Importance of advocating for blood donation and its significance in the todays modern day medicine for the prolonging and improvement of thousands of lives worldwide. I will be addressing the questions: What are blood transfusions and what are their origins? What are the reasons some are reluctant to donate? What is the significance of donor participation in the progress of blood studies and research? What are some of the risk and complications that can arise when hosting a blood drive and how, if possible, can they be prevented? What are some of the limiting and shortening factors that affect the worldwide supply of blood? How is the high demand for blood supply met or attempted to be met?

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Give life: Give Blood. A patient lays on an ambulance gurney, strapped down; in a daze. As the paramedics fill out forms and the siren breaks the silence, the patient looks around. Lights flashing, becoming aware of a warm sensation running down his throbbing face. Panic kicks in as he realizes hes bleeding. The world seems to spin; waking up in a hospital bed and hearing loved ones outside arguing with the staff. What do you mean theres not enough blood?! Im sorry, theres not much we can do under the overwhelming scarcity of blood supply; your son has a very rare blood type. The room turns dark; a loud flat line sound is heard. The patient is declared clinically dead. That patient is you; or it could very well be someday. Advocating the practice of blood donations is a service that should be greater facilitated for people across the globe; doing this will have a significant impact on the lives of thousands in need. As research shows, one donation can save an average of up to three lives.[REDCROSS] To many, blood transfusions are a way in which a life can be saved by simply replenishing the amount of blood lost. Many however, pay little to no attention to the complex process that takes place during a blood transfusion; many fail to realize the importance of donors in the process and more fail to understand the process altogether. I will now approach a method to enlighten those misinformed and shed some light on those bewildered by the process by describing a brief history of where and how blood transfusions came to be a fundamental and necessary part in the world of modern medicine, according to the American Red cross . Blood circulation was discovered in 1628 by British scientist William Harvey, soon after the first transfusion is tried using strays. Years later, the first successful blood transfusion is performed on dogs by physician Richard Lower. The first successful transfusions from sheep to humans were simultaneously recorded by Richard Lower in England and Jean-Baptiste Denis in France. 1818: first successful human to human transfusion is performed by Doctor James Blundell of England. 1940: U.S. creates National blood collection program. 1941: Red Cross begins to conduct national blood donor services and aids soldiers wounded at Pearl Harbor.

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Blood transfusions continue to be researched and new advances have been made in the last decades such as the detection of HIV viruses as well as various Hepatitis types through standard testing performed prior to the donation of blood units for patient and donor alike. Blood transfusions and its application is medicine and scientific purposes have come a long way since its discovery, yet they are a method still underway of long, extensive research. But one thing however, has been defined: advocating the practice of blood donations and the important role donor participation plays in making research move forward, a much more productive progress and efficient results are made possible. Through educating people on the topic of blood donations; its origin usage and practical application, the number of potential donors who dont donate due to ignorance on the topic could potentially drop and the high demand for blood units donated, greatly decreased. If more people are aware of the facts, their sense of fear, as is human behavior, of the unknown will, more likely than not, be reduced. There is plethora of blood facts very easily understood by the general public whose importance could make the difference in a potential donors decision on donating or not. Followed are a list of commonly used misconceptions used as excuses for not donating and responses to these misinformed ideas, according to bloodcenters.org I Might Catch A Disease. A new, sterile needle is used for each donor and then immediately disposed of properly. It is not possible to catch AIDS or any infectious diseases by donating blood. It Might Hurt When They Draw The Blood. The actual drawing causes no pain. You might feel a slight pinch when the needle is inserted, but thats all. Im On Medication. Many medications, including allergy medicines, vitamins, aspirins, birth control and blood pressure pills, do not affect your eligibility as a blood donor. Be sure to tell the medical interviewer what medications you are taking or have recently taken. Im Anemic. A trained technician will test a drop of your blood before you donate. If you are anemic you will not be permitted to donate that day. However, anemia is not usually a permanent

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condition. Just because you have been deferred or told that you were anemic does not necessarily mean that you cannot give blood later. Theyll Take Too Much Blood and Ill Feel Weak. If you weigh at least 110 lbs, you may safely donate blood. Only one pint is taken - no more. You have about two pints of blood for every 25 pounds of body weight, and your body makes new blood constantly. After giving blood most people can resume their normal activities. My Blood Type Is So Common, You Probably Dont Need It. Not true. Some blood types are more common than others, but the rarest type of blood is the type that is not available when needed. Since whole blood and blood components must be transfused within a few weeks, we rely on regular donations of all blood types throughout the year. There exist multiple components to blood which can be taken during a single donation.(Red Cross) These components are: plasma, platelets and red cells(Mayo clinic); each individual component taken different amounts of time to be donated and performing different applications, depending on their need, for saving a patients life. Additionally, blood comes in various types: A, B, AB, and O; each having either positive or negative Antigens. Because O has no antigens, it can be given to all blood types and is thus known as the universal donor type (Give blood). In fact, O is given to patients in emergency rooms when no time is granted for proper testing to be done and determining the patients exact blood type; seeing as how the majority of the world population has an O blood type, it is the most likely candidate to be administered in cases of time-pressed emergencies. Truth is: human ignorance is the cause of many crucial misunderstandings, unnecessary in todays world. Through the educating of people on a topic as important as blood transfusions, the amount of eligible donors who take part in fighting the scarcity of blood supply is probable to rise. It has been proven and stated by many respectable science journals and publications that, on average, one unit of blood donated has the potential to save three lives; these claims have been supported and adapted by worldwide leading blood centers and organizations focused on the topic of blood transfusions and studies such as The Red Cross and The Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center. Therefore, in support of promoting blood donations in our community and in

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communities worldwide, thousands can be benefitted and the high demand of blood required can adequately be dealt with. If more people were aware and better understood these concepts of blood transfusions, the total of people reluctant to donate would decrease and therefore it is beneficial and necessary for this information to be better presented to the general population of our and many other communities worldwide. The need for blood donations is in high demand; an issue that spreads beyond the borders of our land and is of worldwide importance. Due to the rising demand for blood transfusions and the scarcity of donors, thousands of lives are being cut short; lives that could have potentially extended to years. With 41,000 transfusions needed daily in the U.S. alone (3) and 18,000 lives lost due to the inability to meet such high demands, the scarcity of blood units available for donation is an issue in dire need of immediate action required to be taken for its effects to be substantially reduced and felt by thousands worldwide. The effects of the scarcity in blood supply have been greater increased in the last decade, as accounted by natural disasters and other devastating forces that have plagued and impacted many communities in different countries worldwide. In 2010, the small Island country of Haiti was struck by an earthquake of record breaking proportions whose magnitude reached 7.0 in the Richter scale and having multiple aftershocks happen since, some of which have reached almost similar magnitudes and caused as much damage as the initial wave. Since then, worldwide blood centers such as the American Red Cross have aided and provided assistance in the recovery efforts to help the Haitian people affected by this tragic event. Among the efforts and aid provided are nearly 78 billion U.S. dollars that went towards improving the health infrastructure of the country; a vast majority of this money went towards providing the injured and sic with blood units necessary to save the thousands of lives affected by and since the earthquake. In more recent news, the Philippines are now being struck by a typhoon knows as Haiyan, a devastating tropical storm that has been declared the worst one to date in the Philippines. Many organizations worldwide are doing the best they can to provide aid to the Philippines by providing the necessary supplies needed to effectively provide the victims with

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the necessary help; among these supplies is a large supply of blood units available for transfusion to those injured and ill due to the storm. These are a few examples of the countless factors that diminish the blood supply worldwide and a prime example of why donor contributions are so needed in order to successful meet the high demands for blood worldwide. Acknowledging the claims of not everyone being able to donate due to circumstances or preexisting health conditions, and mindful of the impact this has on the number of potential donors ineligible to donate, alternatives have been developed such as synthetic blood development and a practice thats been known as blood Farming. There exist certain criteria in order to be eligible to donate blood. Among these criteria lie underage( all 16 year old ) donors need a parent consent and a minimum weight of 128 pounds, all those 17 and older need a minimum weight of at least 110 pounds and all those who wish to donate are required to be in relative good health, with no preexisting health conditions such as diabetes and HIV. Fully aware that some 16 year olds who wish to donate are prevented to do so by their parents on accounts of religious beliefs and that some health problems are beyond the potential donors control, alternatives that can account for these loses in the donor pool have been developed by companies such as D.A.R.P.A., who has discovered ways for blood farming in which synthetic blood is produced in order to meet high demands of blood transfusions in the battlefields abroad[4], and by Canadian scientist who, in 2008, found a way to synthesize blood from a patients very skin tissue and thus, reducing risk of infections and other complications[5]. Thus, the inability of potential donors to be eligible is somewhat compensated by synthetic blood production; refuting all claims that those ineligible are to blame for the low supply of donations. However, synthetic and genetically engineered solutions are still far from full development, yet the need for blood donations is relentlessly increasing and blood drives that promote donation are what give the best fighting chance. There are complications that rose at last Octobers blood drive; complications which could have been easily been prevented, had the right nutritional information been provided prior to the scheduled date. The major issue ran into at this years blood drive was Iron deficiency. We were informed by the blood center personnel that certain drinks such as soda or ice tea can cause ones Iron level to drop below the required

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12.5g/dL; in order to address this issue in future blood drives, nutritional information should be made available to the donors weeks in advance in order for them to physically prepare their bodies and boost their Iron levels up, thus leading to a higher success rate than this years 79% ; which can be accounted for by 20 donors being deferred due to low Iron levels. Among the nutritional information that should be made available to donors prior to donating is the informing of foods rich in iron that can boost their iron level to the required 12.5g/dL; such foods include: beans, meats and nuts, among others, which are the three main and easiest to access for the vast majority of potential donors. Advocating the practice of blood donations is a service that should be greater facilitated for people in communities worldwide; doing this will have a significant and highly probable positive impact on the lives of thousands both directly and indirectly affected by the scarcity in blood supply available for transfusions that can save thousands of lives such as the average 18,000 lost in the U.S. per day. having proven that through advocating and providing better and more in depth information to potential donors has a great potential to affect their decision on donating towards a more positive outcome for those in need of these donations through a more understanding and well informed view of the importance their time and blood has on the lives of thousands worldwide, The advocating and practice of blood drives worldwide is a feasible solution to the high demands of blood transfusions and donors worldwide. Through the advocating of its importance, Blood drives, donations and transfusions have the potential to have a positive impact on the lives of thousands across the globe.

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Works Cited 1. Eligibility criteria by alphabetical listing American Red Cross. N.p., n.d. web 30 Sept. 2013 2. Autologus and direct donations Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center m.p., n.d. web 30 Sept. 2013 3. Gibbons, Gary H, M.D. What are blood transfusions? nhlbt. Nih 30 Jan. 2012. Web 11 Sept. 2013 4. Willow, Clay First batch of DARPAs synthetic blood delivered to FDA could be on the battlefields soon.Popular Science. N.p. 7 Aug. 2010 web. 14 Oct. 2013 5. Borland, Sophie. Need some blood? You could soon make your own from your skin, say scientist mail Online, Health, 8 Nov. 2010 web. 14 Oct. 2013 6. Blood transfusions and donations Medicine Plus n.p. n.d. web 14 Oct. 2013 7. give the gift of life, donate Blood. WHO 15 Oct. 2013 8. "The Clean Water Crisis In Haiti." Poured Out. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. 9. "Haiti Assistance Program." American Red Cross. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013.