Soldato
By coincidence I happened to give blood for the first time today - bit annoyed when they told me I can't excercise for 24hrs but I could probably do with a rest anyway
Giving blood
- Thread starter elmarko
- Start date
So, I went on Friday.
Wasn't anywhere near as bad as I expected,
I'm not the most keen person for needles/my own blood - but it wasn't really that bad at all.
Took about an hour for the visit (most of the time waiting around) & 6mins to give the blood required.
To those reluctant I'd recommend giving it a go (at least once), I doubt it will be as bad as you are expecting.
I've arranged another visit in a few months time.
Wasn't anywhere near as bad as I expected,
I'm not the most keen person for needles/my own blood - but it wasn't really that bad at all.
Took about an hour for the visit (most of the time waiting around) & 6mins to give the blood required.
To those reluctant I'd recommend giving it a go (at least once), I doubt it will be as bad as you are expecting.
I've arranged another visit in a few months time.
Funny story.
Few years back went in for a knee operation to remove some bone arround my knee.
A few days before i went in for a blood test to make sure everything was ok. the nurse tried a few times with the needle and i ended up fainting.
She said if you stop jumping i will mayby hit the vein. i said if you stock poking me with a needle i will stop jumping. eventually she said look, you are young, you probibly dont have anything to worry about.
Few years back went in for a knee operation to remove some bone arround my knee.
A few days before i went in for a blood test to make sure everything was ok. the nurse tried a few times with the needle and i ended up fainting.
She said if you stop jumping i will mayby hit the vein. i said if you stock poking me with a needle i will stop jumping. eventually she said look, you are young, you probibly dont have anything to worry about.
I tell you what that non-profit making organisation must be making a fortune. I didn't really know they charged that much just to store it. I thought they the had to provide professional staff, equipment costs, storage overheads, delivery costs, checks, irradiate products, leukocyte deplete products, separate products, etc and all that other fancy stuff. Silly me.
That £125 is significantly less than the stuff that we often buy in from other countries (think it was Austria last time I looked).
Man of Honour
Back donating blood as I've been told I can't donate platelets anymore.
I do think we should get paid for our blood, im thinking of stopping donating, for the simple reason its getting to the point where im hanging around waiting too long before my appointments, i dont book a time for the fun of it. Last time it was about 40mins before they even called me in.
Man of Honour
What happened, if you don't mind telling us? Most things that stop platelet donation also stop whole blood AFAIK. If anything whole blood is even more picky about donors.
Man of Honour
The reason blood is not paid for, is because doing so encourages people who really should not be donating to turn up. This makes the screening costs higher, and fills the waiting area with people who will be turned away. I've heard several stories or whole blood waiting times getting bad, and my guess is appointments are being booked too close together so that staff can hit silly management targets. Yes, they have targets of how many people should be donating in a month etc, even though they have little to no control over this. It's been a while since I did whole blood, but the clinic I do apheresis at is always changing various things, which without exception make the situation worse. Cue much rolling of eyes and staff on the front line agreeing with donors how stupid the changes are.
Man of Honour
Not at all M.
Last year platelets said I had an irregular heartbeat to which I didn't agree but I went to see a GP. Fine she said but well send you to cardiology to be safe. Fine they said. Letter sent to platelets and I was donating again and a different staff member too my pulse on the 3 or 4 times I went back.
I then went again and the same nurse took my pulse and said it was irregular and the anti coag they put in puts a mild strain on the heart so I couldn't donate. I said we've been here before and a GP and cardiologist disagree but she wouldn't budge and I'd need to see them again so I did. GP said fine again and cardiologist said fine again. Nothing wrong with your heart.
In the meantime platelets sent a letter saying you've failed twice and can't donate anymore but can go back to regular blood donation. I spoke to the head nurse and tried to argue my case, namely that two GPs and two cardiology visits don't agree with you, said to keep running and cycling etc and said I don't have an irregular heartbeat and my GP is happy to send a letter to that effect. She would budge stating that pulse test failure may well be innocent enough but they can't be sure it's indicative of a more serious problem.
Two GPs and two visits to cardiology can't find this erratic pulse. My better half who's a staff nurse of 20 years can't find this erratic pulse and this is because I don't have an erratic pulse. Four medical professionals have documented this.
Not interested again. They wouldn't listen to medical fact and went by the pulse test of a nurse who found what several others who took my pulse couldn't.
The ironic thing M is that when donated blood they said they were low on platelets and my donation would be spun for them .....
Man of Honour
Not at all M.
Last year platelets said I had an irregular heartbeat to which I didn't agree but I went to see a GP. Fine she said but well send you to cardiology to be safe. Fine they said. Letter sent to platelets and I was donating again and a different staff member too my pulse on the 3 or 4 times I went back.
I then went again and the same nurse took my pulse and said it was irregular and the anti coag they put in puts a mild strain on the heart so I couldn't donate. I said we've been here before and a GP and cardiologist disagree but she wouldn't budge and I'd need to see them again so I did. GP said fine again and cardiologist said fine again. Nothing wrong with your heart.
In the meantime platelets sent a letter saying you've failed twice and can't donate anymore but can go back to regular blood donation. I spoke to the head nurse and tried to argue my case, namely that two GPs and two cardiology visits don't agree with you, said to keep running and cycling etc and said I don't have an irregular heartbeat and my GP is happy to send a letter to that effect. She would budge stating that pulse test failure may well be innocent enough but they can't be sure it's indicative of a more serious problem.
Two GPs and two visits to cardiology can't find this erratic pulse. My better half who's a staff nurse of 20 years can't find this erratic pulse and this is because I don't have an erratic pulse. Four medical professionals have documented this.
Not interested again. They wouldn't listen to medical fact and went by the pulse test of a nurse who found what several others who took my pulse couldn't.
The ironic thing M is that when donated blood they said they were low on platelets and my donation would be spun for them .....
The NBS do seem to be a law into themselves, and that seems a trail of stupidity on their part. Also, unless you were lucky/unlucky, pulses here are usually taken by a Donor Carer, who aren't medically trained, rather than a Nurse?
Soldato
FYI, it can be many more than 3 if you blood test results aren't good. A colleague is on his 5th booster (i.e., 0,1,6,9,10 months) so far.
Man of Honour
Thw donor carers were fine and never had a problem but the same nurse was a pain in the arse quite frankly.
Man of Honour
Worth it Burnsy. A lass I joined with got spat in the eye by a hep b carrier.
Man of Honour
Yeah, I'm aware of that. There is a test at the end of the 3rd jab which will tell me how well I'm responding.
Yeah, there was a recent job that really spurred me into action involving a search on a drug addict with needles in his pockets and he was Hep B positive. On the upside, at least he told me they were there.
Not interested again. They wouldn't listen to medical fact and went by the pulse test of a nurse who found what several others who took my pulse couldn't.
The ironic thing M is that when donated blood they said they were low on platelets and my donation would be spun for them .....
What you should be told and I am guessing what is happening is that as most nurses can't prescribe what a lot do, in situations like this, is detail and administer medication under something called a Patient Group Direction.
This is essentially is a protocol that says "If this is present and this is not present then you can give this drug at this exact strength". This removes any actual prescribing being required. However, if you do not have some present or there is the slightest hint that something possibly bad is present then they can not give under any circumstances. To accept that would then remove them out of the protocol and into prescribing which they wouldn't be able to legally undertake.
Annoying yes but a necessary safety mechanism. But you have to fit the exact criteria of the protocol. If medication is being given unprescribed or off protocol etc then that is far more dangerous.
Man of Honour
I once had an exhibit where the description was something like: "He has been using the bag to spit into. He has Hepatitis B and TB." The bag concerned needed to be emptied so we could compare the plastic bags inside. Although not the ones which were stuck together. That said, my favourite collection of diseases on one defendant was HIV, Hep B and Scabies.
Man of Honour
I think I'd be triple gloving for that one.
Soldato
Well I registered to give blood and I go for the first time ever next week. My nurse got quite excited at me the other day asking me if I already donated and when I said no she told me I really should think about it considering I'm Bneg which she explained was in high demand. I've meant to give blood for ages but she inspired me to get off my butt and do it 
That's quite amazing!! Well done.
Finally got there today, after four years of whole blood and fifteen of apheresis. Only to find out that I don't get a prize, because the crystal glass decanters they used to give out were made by Royal Dalton, who have gone bust. I will be going to a meal at some point in the next few months (when they have enough 500s from the local area), and a prize will be sorted at some point.
In the meantime, you mortals should start worshipping me...
That's quite amazing!! Well done.