I was just thinking….
As I sat with Hayden yesterday afternoon watching those awefully red platelets go into his body, I wondered about the whole platelet process. Remembering back to living in the Appleton, Community Blood Center, I know that once a person gives blood, it is spun down in the Centerfuse and separated into the little bags and frozen. Hospitals would call us to deliver the plasma, platelets or red blood cells by blood type to the hospital via cab.
Of course I am forgetting the most important parts which I never was involved in.
So I looked it up and here is some info on it…
What is done with donated blood?
Typically, each donated unit of blood - referred to as whole blood - is separated into multiple components, such as red blood cells, plasma, platelets, and cryoprecipatitated AHF (antihemophilic factor). Each component can be transfused to different individuals with different needs. Therefore, each donation can be used to help save as many as three lives.
Who needs blood?
Under normal circumstances, every two seconds someone in America will need a blood transfusion. Blood transfusions are used for trauma victims - due to accidents and burns - heart surgery, organ transplants, ITP patients, women with complications during childbirth, newborns and premature babies, and patients receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or other diseases, such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia.
Go to http://www.givelife2.org/aboutblood/faq.asp#4 for more blood answers.