Blood Drive! Anyone walking through the campus center can clearly see that there’s a blood drive this week.
Conveniently located in the Campus Center hockey arena, students can’t walk through the Campus Center without seeing kids laying on beds or drinking juice boxes at the recovery table. Donating blood is great, but there are some instances when things can just go wrong.
Not drinking enough water means finding a vein is more difficult leading to more needle
pricks then necessary. There’s also, always one kid that faints on their way to the snack/recovery table. But, even those “rough patches” in donating blood doesn’t stop the whole process from being the easiest way to save someone’s life. So in honor of the blood drive here are some answers and tips to the most frequently asked questions about blood drives.
1. It is important to donate blood, because as the blood donor qualifications become
more strict, there is a risk for low blood supplies. The need for blood is an ongoing occurrence.
2. There is no risk of contracting any diseases such as AIDS from donating because
each needle is sterile and fresh.
3. For a normal blood donation, approximately one pint of your blood is taken. This
weighs around 1 lb. The red blood cells will all be replaced in a few weeks, but in just
a few hours after donating you’ll feel back to normal.
4. To allow time for red blood cells to return to normal you can only donate once every
56 days, roughly every two months.
5. Most blood that is taken from drives is available for use within 48 hours. So that
significantly shows how much blood donations is actually needed.
6. To make donation easy and fun for everyone make sure to eat before and drink lots of
water because the more hydrated you are the stronger your veins are.
Giving blood can be scary; however it can also be one of the most rewarding
opportunities. Your blood donation can help save a life after a traumatic accident or even a surgery gone wrong. So consider that next time you walk past the hockey arena during Oswego’s blood drive week.