Flamingos Publisher

Donate Blood

How many of you will safe someone’s life if you can? Most of you can safe a life if you can donate blood. And you can know if you’re a good candidate for blood donation through simple blood test.
Blood donation is a need in US today because there is a shortage of blood. US Health Care System needs blood to prevent millions of patients from dying. And the reason there is shortage in blood is people are not donating blood. They are worried about safety of either donating blood or receiving blood.
Evidence of Growing Crisis of blood donation
According to National Women Health Report, 4.5 million American lives are saved each year through blood transfusion and approximately 38,000 units—4,000 gallon of blood is used each day in US. Despite the fact that 40,000 Americans donate blood each day, this is not enough to keep the health care system running according to James AuBuchon, MD, Director of Blood Bank and Transfusion Service in Dartmouth.
In 2000 a report from National Blood Data Resource Center states nine percent of the nation’s hospitals had to cancel or postpone electric surgery because of lack of red blood cells units.
Safety
Donating blood is a safe and easy process.
Here are the safety facts of blood donation:
• You can’t get AIDS or other infectious disease by giving blood. A sterile, disposable needle is used for each blood donation. Once used, the needle is discarded.
• Feeling faint or fatigued after donating blood is rare or minor. If it occurs, it most likely will pass in a matter of hours.
• You can only donate if you’re healthy. You’re given a mini physical — temperature, pulse, blood pressure, and red cell count check— prior to donation to ensure that you are feeling well and that it is safe for you to give blood.
Receiving blood is safe. Before, there used to be deaths related to transfusion errors of mislabeling of patients’ blood tube and patients’ identity. Today, US Health Care System has device a new system to make blood transfusion safe. Most hospitals have introduced barcode scanning system where the bar code on tube matches the code on patients’ bracelet. This system has proven to work. For example, Georgetown University hospital in Washington DC had no single fatality error related to transfusion in four years since implementing the system.
Conclusion
We can prevent the nation’s blood supply from disaster if just five percent increase in number of people who donate blood—about forty more people in each state every day donate blood. Why are you not donating blood?
There are millions of patients in hospitals in need of blood and these patients are laying on their hospital beds wondering when help will come. They’re counting on you and wondering if you feel their pains. Prove to these patients that you really care, and you’re willing to go extra mile to give them chance to live by donating blood now!