What You Need to Know Before Donating Blood

It'due south condom to donate blood — and it'south more of import now than ever before.

Image Credit: LIVESTRONG.com Artistic

Subsequently months of social distancing and stay-at-abode orders, y'all may be itching to volume an appointment at your hair salon or plan a nighttime out at your favorite eating place. But there'southward something even more of import that should be on your radar: altruistic blood.

"Blood donations are essential for hospitals, even in the midst of a pandemic," Ross Herron, Jr., MD, chief medical officer at the American Red Cross, tells LIVESTRONG.com.

In fact, individual donations are more crucial at present than e'er before. While just nearly every business and industry has felt the ripple effects of the pandemic and subsequent social-distancing measures, claret collection agencies have been specially difficult-hit.

"A significant portion of our blood supply used to come from community blood drives," says Andrea Cefarelli, senior executive director of donor recruitment and marketing at the New York Blood Middle, noting that drives were canceled for several months after the pandemic hit. While they've "been successful in adding more each month," she says, by Apr 2021, "we're notwithstanding only at about 60 percentage of our pre-pandemic number."

In light of the coronavirus pandemic, LIVESTRONG.com is raising awareness about the urgent need for people to donate claret with our Give Blood, Give Back serial.

Operating with fewer donor centers and drives was adequate when hospitals were focused on COVID-19 patients, Cefarelli says, but equally they work to get dorsum to normal, the need for claret for procedures like elective surgeries is rebounding quickly.

Indeed, as people venture outside their homes more than, the need for blood becomes even more than urgent.

"Claret is used for more than just surgery — for example, cancer patients are returning to chemotherapy treatments, but they oft crave donated blood to help them get through it," Cefarelli notes.

In addition, she says, hospitals are seeing more patients who demand blood for trauma care subsequently things similar car or bicycle accidents. "Having enough stores may literally be the difference between life and death for them," she stresses.

"During 2020, Ruby Cantankerous claret drive cancellations tripled compared to the year prior, mostly due to the pandemic. In fact, we saw our blood drives at loftier schoolhouse and colleges drop by more than than 50 pct compared to the year before," Dr. Herron says. "Information technology'due south really important that people start donating again so hospitals have an acceptable supply of claret to salvage people's lives."

Since June 2020, the American Red Cross has been testing all blood, platelet and plasma donations for COVID-xix antibodies, which tin help provide insight into whether donors may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus.

Equally part of this effort, plasma from whole claret donations made at Cherry Cross claret drives that exam positive for COVID-xix antibodies were also able to help coronavirus patients in demand of ambulatory plasma transfusions. Convalescent plasma is a type of claret production nerveless from people who accept recovered from COVID-19 and contains antibodies that might help those actively fighting the virus. The Red Cantankerous is no longer collecting convalescent plasma, explaining on its website that they "accept been able to build a sufficient supply ... to come across the foreseeable needs of COVID-nineteen patients."

Yes, It's Safe to Donate Blood

Even if yous're non dainty nigh needles, your urge to be a good Samaritan may pale in comparison to your concerns virtually getting infected with the novel coronavirus. But blood donation groups beyond the state are 100 percentage devoted to making sure you stay safe, Dr. Herron says.

Can Yous Donate Blood After Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine?

Yes, you tin. Getting the vaccine does not disqualify you from donating blood, per the American Blood-red Cross. Their recommendations are based off of guidance from the FDA.

And y'all don't have to look until you're fully vaccinated, either. You tin donate blood after getting the first or 2d dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine. Information technology's too OK to donate post-obit the ane-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Likewise important to know: If you're an eligible donor, you don't have to wait to donate blood until after you've gotten the vaccine, simply you lot should be feeling well and be complimentary of symptoms, according to the American Red Cross.

If you lot do not know which type of COVID-xix vaccine you received or you have gotten a live-attenuated vaccine, and so you will have to wait two weeks earlier donating blood. Live-attenuated vaccines apply a weakened course of the virus and are currently non being used in the United states. The types of bachelor vaccines in the U.S. are mRNA (east.chiliad. Pfizer and Moderna) and viral vector (J&J).

What to Know Before Donating Blood

Here's the rundown on the latest donor safety guidelines and what you can do to go on yourself and others salubrious.

1. Brand an Engagement

In the past, donation centers were only too happy to accommodate a walk-in, Dr. Herron says. At present, to maintain appropriate social distancing and ensure at that place's adequate fourth dimension in between donors to sanitize shared surfaces, you'll need to book in advance.

Use our interactive map or visit RedCrossBlood.org, AmericasBlood.org or AABB.org to notice a bulldoze or donation site near you.

two. Before You Go, Check That You're Feeling Salubrious

You should merely donate if you're feeling well, says Ralph Vassallo, Jr., MD, primary medical and scientific officeholder at nonprofit blood banking concern Vitalant. Although there are no reported cases of the coronavirus spreading via blood transfusion, you could nonetheless potentially infect staff or others around yous during your donation.

Tip

If y'all accept a fever, cough, difficulty breathing, headache or GI upset like vomiting or diarrhea, stay home and reschedule your appointment.

There are a few other general eligibility requirements to keep in mind, as well. You must weigh a minimum of 110 pounds and be at least 17 years old (or xvi with parental consent), for example, according to the American Cherry-red Cross.

In light of the coronavirus pandemic, the FDA has announced changes to some of the other restrictions to aggrandize who can donate:

• People assigned male at birth (AMAB) must wait 3 months (instead of a twelvemonth) after having sex with someone also AMAB
• People assigned female at birth (AFAB) must wait three months (instead of a year) later having sex with someone who is AMAB who has had sex activity with other people AMAB
• Y'all must wait three months (instead of a twelvemonth) after getting a tattoo or piercing
• Y'all must await three months (instead of a year) afterwards traveling to a malaria-endemic area

Note that blood donation organizations are not required to implement these changes, so it's best to bank check with your donation center if y'all fall into whatever of the above categories.

Just like you would at the grocery store or chemist's shop, try to keep at least half dozen feet of distance between yourself and others both on your way to the donation middle and while y'all're donating, in accord with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s social distancing guidelines. Since the virus is spread by respiratory droplets, this distance can help y'all avoid coming into contact with an infected person's germs (and proceed you from inadvertently spreading the virus if you lot happen to exist infected).

To help yous achieve this, all beds, as well as article of furniture in waiting and refreshment areas, are spaced at to the lowest degree vi feet apart.

"To requite information technology some context, before COVID-19, if we were offered the chance to hold a blood drive in a room that was xx square feet, we'd take it," Cefarelli says. "At present we won't do it anyplace that's under 2,000 foursquare feet."

Organizations have too redesigned their approach to mobile collections and, when using buses, have modified the interiors to allow for appropriate social distancing.

iv. Wear a Face up Mask

Of form, maintaining the six-foot rule won't be possible when information technology comes to interacting with the staff members who prep yous to donate, which is why you should article of clothing a confront mask.

The CDC recommends everyone wear a face mask in areas of "substantial or loftier transmission," regardless of vaccination status. Masks are required at many (if non all) blood drives and donation centers. Staff wear surgical masks, merely you can clothing a cloth one.

5. Become a Temperature Cheque at the Door

Since a fever is one of the hallmark symptoms of COVID-19, you'll take your temp checked before you enter a donation area. If it'south over 99.v degrees, you'll be turned away. The aforementioned rule applies for staff members, who get a temperature cheque before they kickoff a shift.

You tin can wait a more thorough health screening in one case you're inside. Claret donors have always been required to undergo a "mini-concrete," Dr. Herron says, where pulse, claret pressure and blood hemoglobin levels are all measured (the latter screens for anemia). But now, the screener volition also enquire virtually COVID-xix symptoms similar a cough, trouble animate and head or torso aches. Any potential donors with these symptoms volition exist sent home.

6. Wash Your Hands

Make sure your hands are clean when you arrive at the donation site, and practice good mitt hygiene throughout your visit, washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or rubbing down your digits with an alcohol-based sanitizer after touching a shared surface, using the bathroom, coughing, sneezing or blowing your olfactory organ.

Make certain to wash your hands one time you're done donating blood and before you hit the refreshment area, because you've been on a high-impact surface (the bed).

Donation sites are doing their function to keep things clean, too. Annihilation that's touched by staff or a donor is disinfected in between uses, Cefarelli says. Blankets offered to continue donors comfy while they donate are also washed afterwards every use.

All donation sites also go on to follow prophylactic practices like discarding needles later each use and sanitizing your peel before drawing blood.

7. Take Care of Yourself Earlier and After Your Donation

There's no evidence that you lot can catch coronavirus from the deed of giving blood. "It is important to dispel concerns," says Claudia Cohn, MD, PhD, main medical officer of AABB. "Individuals are not at take chances of contracting COVID-xix through the claret donation procedure or via blood transfusion since respiratory viruses are mostly not known to be transmitted by donations or transfusions."

There's as well no evidence that donating weakens your immune system, co-ordinate to the Rhode Isle Blood Center.

Still, y'all should take steps to care for yourself earlier and after to stay as good for you as possible. The American Red Cantankerous recommends doing the following:

• Get at least eight hours of sleep the night before your date
• Eat a healthy, balanced repast earlier donating
• Stay hydrated past loading up on non-alcoholic fluids before and after
• Avert whatsoever heavy lifting or vigorous do later

​Additional reporting by Jessica Migala​

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Source: https://www.livestrong.com/article/13726791-how-to-donate-blood-coronavirus/

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