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- cross-posted to:
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A blood supply shortage in the US has reached a “crisis” level, according to the American Red Cross, which says it is the second time in its 150-year history that levels have been this low.
Factors including wildfires and extreme heat have combined to create the current situation, Dr Courtney Lawrence, who works with the American Red Cross, told the BBC.
Supply levels dropped by a quarter just last month. The crisis has struck during summer, when the amount of blood needed by hospitals typically increases.
That is because of an increased number of car accidents and more people spending time outdoors, resulting in more injuries that require blood transfusions, Lawrence said.
I thought that O- has undesirable plasma.
Oh well, for me at least, I feel good about the donation for donation’s sake.
Morally it’s better for O-s to donate whole blood than plasma. Plasma donation is great but it’s usually for developing medicines and prefers AB+, while whole blood is more likely to go to people in immediate need of blood and prefers O-.
I’ve done both and personally prefer giving blood to plasma. Plasma takes so much longer, has worse phlebotomists (they damaged one of my veins) and is just a generally more depressing environment
That said, if it’s all the same, give where the shortage is
If he’s getting paid for the plasma then it’s being used for research, not for donations, so they’ll still take it either way.