Medical emergencies involving blood loss tend to put patients in critical condition. Many a time, blood transfusion is needed which is one of the very effective steps in saving lives. Blood donation is a process in which blood is drawn from a person on his own will so that this can be used by someone who is battling between life and death and a pint of blood can help him win against death.
There are many components of blood that are donated by people from all around the world. Whole blood is the most common form of a blood transfusion but platelets, fresh frozen plasma, and RBCs are separately transfused whenever fractionated blood is required.
Types of blood donation and Prerequisites
There are two types of blood donations. One is allogeneic and the other one is called direct blood donation. In the allogeneic type of blood transfusions, the blood donors are usually unpaid volunteers who donate their blood to unknown recipients in their time of need. Allogeneic blood transfusion occurs at the blood banks where blood is drawn from the donors and stored for later use whenever it is needed.
In a direct transfusion, the blood is donated directly from the donor to the recipient on the same day. Fresh blood is transfused to the recipients which are donated by relatives or anyone present and willing to donate. Direct transfusion might occur during emergencies.
Screening before blood donation
Blood is donated for the purpose of saving lives. So, it is necessary that the blood is properly screened before it is drawn from the donor. The most important aspect of screening before blood donation is for hepatitis B and C and also for HIV infection. The collected blood must be free of these viruses and antibodies. Moreover, it is sometimes screened for sexually transmitted diseases like syphilis.
Blood donation form
A blood Donation form is duly filled out before the actual donation happens. This is one of the necessary steps of the procedure.
- Consent is the most important step. It is important the donor signs a consent in which he signs and is aware of all the consequences of the blood donation and consents to anything that happens thereafter.
- Information about the donor is mentioned along with the details of his contact and address.
- Sometimes, information about the recipient may also be mentioned especially if a direction donation has to take place.
- We also need to mention if this is the first donation or if he had been donating previously. The date of the donation is mentioned just after that.
- The identity card number of the patient is needed to be mentioned because these particulars can be required at any stage of life for any reason.
- Screening of the donor and the results are mentioned which must be highlighted while referring to a blood donation form. It’s a must that the donor is free of hepatitis B and C so that his blood does not become the source of infection and disease.
