All about Donating and Receiving Blood

Every year about 45 million citizens receive blood transfusions to save their lives. Every 3 seconds there is a person in the USA that needs a life saving transfusion. In just one day, there are about 34,000 red blood cell units needed for patients in the US. Any adult that is 17 years or older and weighs the minimum of 110 pounds can give blood. Accident victims, people undergoing surgery, and anemic patients are among the incidents that people need blood. Children that are being treated for cancer also need blood.

Blood transfusions are completely safe because every donor goes through an interview process where their details are taken. Additionally, every unit of blood is sampled for any known bacteria and viruses that may be within the blood. The nation’s blood supply is managed through hospitals, private institutions, and public blood banks.

Blood Bank Locators

• Donating Blood
  • American Red Cross Locator 
  • AABB Blood Bank Locator
  • United Blood Services
  • Blood Banker Nation wide
  • World Wide Blood Bank Locator
  • Donate Cord Blood
  • Blood Banks of the Pacific
  • New York Blood Center
  • Puget Sound Blood Center – Washington
  • Google Maps
• Receiving Blood
  • Transplant Centers
  • Cord Blood Lifebank
  • Cord Blood Registry
  • American Red Cross – Autologous blood donation requires prescription
  • Main Line Health

How to Donate Blood

• How to Donate Blood, Platelets, and Plasma by Claire Grinton
• How to Donate Blood Bloodmobile by Bloodmobile.com

Who Is Eligible

• Eligibility Requirements by American Red Cross
• Who Can Donate Blood? By University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Am I Eligible? By Blood Centers of the Pacific

Process of Donating Blood

• Blood Donation Process by American Red Cross
• The Donation Process by Blood Bank of Hawaii
• The Blood Donation Process by AABB

Side Effects of Donating Blood

• What are the risks and possible side effects of donating blood or blood product? By St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
• Are There Any Risks When Donating? By SANBS

Who Needs Blood

• Needing Blood by Blood Bank of Alaska
• Who Needs a Blood Transfusion? By NHLBI

      Types of Diseases

• Why Cancer Patients Might Need Blood Product Transfusions by American Cancer Society
• What is Sickle Cell Disease? By Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc
• Blood Transfusion for Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Myeloma by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Why People Need Blood

• The Need by My Blood, Your Blood
• Blood Transfusions by Teens Health

Blood Transfusions

• What Is a Blood Transfusion? By National Heart Lung and Blood Institute
• Blood Transfusions – Who Can Receive Blood from Whom? By Nobelprize.org

Blood Types

• Blood Types by American Red Cross
• Rare Blood Types by Rare Blood Groups

Finding a Match

• HLA Matching: Finding the Best Donor or Cord Blood Unit by National Marrow Donor Program

Why You Need a Match

• Blood Component Transfusion  by American Cancer Society
• Blood Transfusions and the Immune System by NCBI

Nation’s Blood Supply

• NHF – Guardian of the Nation’s Blood Supply by National Hemophilia Foundation

How Blood is Kept Safe

• How safe is the blood supply in the United States? By Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Testing Donors for Diseases Before Giving Blood

• Testing of Donor Blood for Infectious Disease by AABB

Other Information

• When Your Child Needs a Transplant by National Marrow Donor Program

Other resources