Some students jump at chance to give blood, others wary

Students came out and donated blood in the Commons Wednesday for the Colonial Athletic Association’s “Have a Heart Blood Challenge.”

Part of a multiple-campus blood drive involving the schools within the CAA, the event has been running successfully at VCU since 2005.

While only 41 pints of blood were donated the first year, the number rose to 325 last year. The Virginia Blood Services is projecting 600 pints this year.

For business management major Andy Wright, the act of giving that is most important.

“I’ve been giving blood for the past four years, so I figured I might as well keep doing it,” Wright said.

While the act of giving blood takes only five to ten minutes, the entire process of getting screened to give blood takes an hour, spokesperson Brian Chandler of Virginia Blood Services said.

“The requirements for this year’s blood drive was a minimum of 110 pounds and good standards for blood pressure, pulse and iron levels,” Chandler said.

Students start off by filling out a survey asking about where they have traveled.

“We do this to make sure students don’t have any infectious diseases in their blood,” Chandler said.

Then, a sample of their blood is taken for screening and if that is successful, students may donate blood.

General science major Charles Schirra donated through the process of apheresis, known as double-red donation.

Double-red donation drains a person’s blood into a machine and spins it through a centrifuge, returning the plasma and platelets to the donor while keeping the red blood cells for the donation.

“There are a lot of health benefits in doing this, such as lowering your blood pressure,” Schirra said.

Colleen Freeman, a crafts and materials and Spanish double major, had her blood donated through the whole-blood donation process, in which the blood drains into a pouch.

“I’ve never done it before, and I’m kind of scared, since I’ve passed out before,” Freeman said.

According to Chandler, only 37 percent of Americans can donate blood, down from 60 percent. This is because more Americans are traveling abroad, which makes them ineligible to donate.

Of that 37 percent, only five percent donate blood.

Biology major Virginia Wilkins could not donate because of medications she takes.

“I would do it otherwise,” Wilkins said.

However, Danny Tiet, an information systems major, has other reasons for not donating.

“I just don’t want to have a pint of blood drained from me,” Tiet said.