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Blood Services FAQ
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Each blood donation is assigned a unique computer barcode number, which will identify it throughout its path from the donor
to a hospital patient. Immediately after the blood donation, the blood is placed in transport containers designed to keep it
at a safe temperature until it reaches a Florida Blood Services component laboratory. In the component lab,
the blood is separated into its components. The products are then placed in quarantined, temperature-controlled refrigeration
units until the test results are received (usually 12-16 hours later) and the blood can be released for distribution or destroyed.
From local distribution centers, the blood is transported to hospitals based on patient need. Hospital personnel then transfuse the
blood or blood products to a patient in need.
All blood donations are processed and available for use between 24 and 48 hours. Whole blood is processed into components
(red cells, platelets, plasma). After processing, the red cells can be stored for 42 days. Plasma can be frozen and stored
for up to 12 months. Platelets (from whole blood or by apheresis) expire after five days.
Yes. The blood supply is the safest it's ever been, especially since the implementation of nucleic acid-amplification testing
(NAT) under an FDA-sponsored research protocol. NAT is a more sensitive gene-based test to screen the blood supply for HIV and
hepatitis C. Fourteen tests are performed on every unit of donated blood. Eleven of these are for infectious diseases.
General safety procedures are also in place: blood donor eligibility standards, individual screening, laboratory testing,
confidential exclusion of donations, and donor record checks.
Blood helps keep the body healthy. Blood carries oxygen and nutrients to all parts of the body, and takes carbon dioxide and
other waste products to the lungs, kidneys, and liver for disposal. It fights infections, and helps heal wounds. It is needed
to sustain the lives of people whose blood functions have been impaired by injury or illness.
According to the National Blood Data Resource Center, U.S. institutions collected more than 15 million units of whole blood
and red cells in 2001, the most recent year for which data are available. Blood centers collected 93% of the donated units,
while hospitals collected 7%. These donations were made by approximately eight million volunteer blood donors.
According to the most recent data from the National Blood Data Resource Center, U.S. hospitals transfused nearly 14 million
units of whole blood and red blood cells to 4.9 million patients in 2001 - that's an average of 38,000 units of blood needed
on any given day. Whole blood can be separated into its components red blood cells, plasma, and platelets.
The total number of units of all of these components transfused in 2001 was 29 million. And the volume of blood transfused
is increasing at the rate of 6% per year. In emergency conditions such as war or disaster, the need for blood may change.
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, 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.
The primary components of whole blood are red blood cells, platelets, and plasma.
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Blood product
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Main Uses
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Whole Blood
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Open heart surgery, newborns
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Red Blood Cells
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Trauma, anemia, surgery
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Platelets
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Cancer patients receiving chemotherapy
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Fresh frozen plasma
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Massive transfusions
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Plasma
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Burns
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All blood types are needed. Common blood types are needed because there are many patients with them. Less common blood
types are needed because there are fewer donors to give them. However, people with O- blood are particularly in demand
because they are the "universal donor." It means that people of all blood types can receive O- blood safely, so it is
used during life-threatening emergencies or when the matching blood type is in short supply. AB types are universal
recipients. This relationship is reversed for plasma products. AB type plasma can be transfused to all patients,
while O- types are the universal plasma recipients. Therefore, all types are really needed!
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Blood Type
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Distribution of Blood Type in U.S. Population*
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Percent of U.S. Population You Can Receive Red Blood Cells From
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Percent of U.S. Population You Can Give Red Blood Cells To
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O+
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38%
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45%
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84%
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O-
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7%
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7%
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100%
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A+
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34%
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85%
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37%
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A-
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6%
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13%
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44%
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B+
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9%
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56%
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12%
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B-
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2%
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9%
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15%
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AB+
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3%
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100%
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3%
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AB-
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1%
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16%
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4%
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Aphersis is the process of removing a specific component of the blood, such as platelets or plasma, and returning the
remaining components (red blood cells and plasma or platelets respectively) to the donor. This process allows more of one
particular part of the blood to be collected than could be separated from a unit of whole blood. For example, the amount
of platelets collected in one apheresis donation is five to eight times more than in a regular blood donation. Platelet
apheresis donations also allow donors to give a lot more often if desired. Platelet donors only need to wait 3 days before
they are eligible to donate again, versus 56 days for whole blood donors.
750+ blood donations must be collected every day of the year to meet requirements by Tampa Bay area patients in
Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, and Pinellas Counties.
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