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Find a DoctorMedical ServicesFind a Clinical TrialManaging Your Health Care
Health AffairsMedical CenterSchool of MedicineUC Irvine Douglas Hospital
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Blood Donor CenterBlood donations are truly the “Gift of Life” for patients in need. Because there is no substitution for human blood, blood donors help to ensure we meet the needs of our community. Did you know that a trauma patient can use between 30-100 units of blood? Cancer patients receiving treatment often need ongoing blood transfusions in order to survive. Premature babies many times require blood transfusion as well. Currently, less than five percent of Orange County residents donate blood, yet 85 percent of them will need a blood transfusion at some point in their life. Why is your blood donation so important to the hospital? UC Irvine Medical Center has the only Level I trauma center in Orange County. In addition, it has a Regional Burn Center and a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. Each year we transfuse an average of 25,000 blood products to our patients. Every three seconds someone needs blood, and every blood donation can save up to three lives. When you donate blood at the UC Irvine Blood Donor Center, you are saving lives right here in your community. The blood donor center is located in Pavilion III at the UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange. Pavilion III is located adjacent to the parking structure. Please bring in your parking ticket for validation. Blood Donor Center Who can donate blood? • Be 17 years of age or older There are additional regulations on donating blood. Please click the link below for more information. More information on who can donate » Our priority: your safety and comfort Our priority is to make sure your blood donation experience is safe, comfortable and fun. We have highly trained professional nurses and staff who treat you with respect and tender loving care. Safety is always foremost on our mind. This applies to you the donor, as well as to the person who will be receiving your life saving blood. All supplies used in the donation process are sterile and used only once. You can not get AIDS or any infectious disease by donating blood. If you have any questions about this, please feel free to ask any of our medical staff. How long will it take? The actual blood donation only takes between 5-10 minutes; however, you should plan to be with us for about one hour. This includes time to fill out a health questionnaire, have your blood pressure, pulse, temperature and iron levels checks, as well as enjoy refreshments afterwards. Donors are asked to eat a well –balanced meal and drink plenty of non- caffeinated fluids prior to donating. Will my blood be tested? A sample of your blood will be tested for hepatitis, syphilis, Chagas, West Nile Virus, HIV (AIDS) and HTLV. These tests are performed to protect the patients who will receive the blood. If any test shows that you may be a carrier of any of these or other viruses, or if we are unable to perform complete testing, your blood will not be transfused. If any of our tests show something you should know, such as a positive test result, we contact you privately by mail or telephone regarding our findings. Are there any other types of blood donations needed? Yes! We are also in need of platelet donations. What are platelets? Platelets are colorless cells which are needed for normal blood clotting in order to control bleeding. Who needs platelets? Patients with cancer and leukemia, transplant patients and patients with blood disorders benefit from platelet blood products. During many types of cancer treatments, both cancer cells and healthy cells are destroyed, so patients need platelets to prevent bleeding. How are platelets collected? Platelets are collected by a process called apheresis (ay-fur-ee-sis). This is a special kind of blood donation that allows whole blood to be taken from a donor and separated into its component parts with all but the needed component being returned to the donor. The needed component, such as platelets, is collected, tested and given to patients whose platelet count is low. Why is blood separated? Whole blood is made up of several parts including red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets and plasma. Each component has a special use. Each unit of whole blood contains only two tablespoons of platelets. It would take six to ten whole blood donations to supply enough platelets for one patient. However, one apheresis donation from a single donor can provide enough platelets for one transfusion. Who can donate platelets? Requirements for platelet donors are similar to those for whole blood donations. • Must be at least 17 years old Are platelet donations safe? Yes. Each donation is closely supervised by trained and licensed employees who care for the donor throughout the process. Platelets are quickly replaced in the donor’s blood. It is impossible to get AIDS or any disease by donating platelets. The needle, tubing and collection bags in the machine are sterile and thrown away after each donation. How does the process work? A needle is placed into each arm. One is called the withdrawal needle and the other is the return needle. Blood is drawn from the donor’s arm and sent through sterile tubing into a centrifuge located in a cell-separator machine. The machine spins the blood to separate the platelets from the other components. The platelets are collected and the remaining components are returned to the donor in the other arm. Only a small portion of the donor’s blood is in the machine at anytime (less than a cup). What can I do during my donation? Each bed has its own television and DVD/ VHS player. You are welcome to watch television, or bring a movie to watch during the process. How do I become a platelet donor? Please contact us so we can answer any additional questions and schedule an appointment for you to donate. You can reach us by telephone at 714.456.5064 or 714.456.LIFE or e-mail us at donateblood@ uci.edu. How can I host a blood drive? Our mobile team would love to come to your office, school, place of worship or club to hold a blood drive. We have a beautiful blood mobile that can fit most groups. If we can not accommodate you on the blood mobile, it is possible that we can set up in a room at your location. Most blood drives run 4-6 hours and we can set the hours to best meet the needs of your group. What will I need to do? Your main responsibility will be to promote the blood drive and recruit donors. We will provide you with marketing materials such as posters and fliers to help advertise your blood drive to your group. You will work closely with one of our recruitment representatives to secure a space for the blood mobile or an appropriate room. They will keep in touch with you throughout the process to answer questions and see how the donor recruitment process is going. On the day of the drive, we will need you to meet our bus 1 hour prior to the first donor appointment. In addition, we will need a copy of the donor schedule, directions and access to the restrooms and cafeteria (if there is one). Then you can leave the rest to our team, checking in from time to time to see how things are going. Each donor will receive a t-shirt or a coupon for a free pint of Baskin Robbins ice cream. This is our way of saying thank you for taking the time to save lives! Please call Teresa Barrett-Bewley at 714.456.5913 to schedule a blood drive. |
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