Archive for category Blood Donors
Resolutions: Never, Not Me.. Well, Just This One!
Posted by admin in Blood Donors, My Travelin' Tweeps, TravelDesigned, Uncategorized on January 9th, 2010
Resolutions: Never, Not Me.. Well, Just This One!
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I'm all about travel. Adding Service, Value & Experience to your Travel. Love gardening and photography too!

Resolutions: Never, Not Me… Well, Just This One!
I have never been a fan of New Year’s resolutions. I don’t like to make promises I know I am not going to keep, not even to myself. This year though, I have made a resolution and it’s one I can keep!
It all started on January 2nd when on Twitter I received a tweet from my tweep DiffWorldMexico asking me to reach out to my twitter friends with a link to a Facebook page. The page had a plea for blood needed for Phil Pain, a young British student studying in Mexico, who fell from a 7th story balcony on New Year’s Day in Mazatlan. He was in desperate need of a substantial amount of O negative blood before the doctors could even begin to operate.
This really got me thinking about people who travel that experience accidents and about the need for blood everyday in general. I started doing some research on the websites of the American Red Cross and the Canadian Blood Service. What I learned absolutely shocked me! I am sure worldwide the statistics are just as staggering, if not more so.
• Every minute someone in Canada needs blood and every 2 seconds In the United States
• More than 5 million patients a year need blood in the US
• Less than 38% of the population in the US can even give blood and only 8% actually do
• O-negative blood is needed in emergencies before the patient's blood type is known and with newborns who need blood.
• Only 7% of people in the US have the Universal donor blood type, O negative
• Patients from car accidents often require 100 pints
• Cancer patients often need blood during chemotherapy treatments, sometimes daily
• Platelets critical for cancer patients only have a shelf life of 5 days

The good news is: just one donation can save up to 3 lives!
It only takes a little over an hour of your time.
So, my first ever New Year’s resolution is to give blood 6 times this year. I know it will make me feel good to know I am helping save lives.
It costs nothing and cookies and juice are involved ![]()
How about you? Will you join me in my first New Year's resolution? Please let me know on twitter or facebook if you are joining me in my resolution, I would love to hear from you!
Give the gift of life,
and if you can't give… will you please encourage your friends, family, co-workers to become donors?
–heck, encourage your enemies too!
If you have traveled to the following countries… please check with your blood bank to see if you are eligible to be a donor.
The following information is from http://www.giveblood.org/index.php?page=faqs
No deferral means –you should be eleigilbe to give blood:
| Location |
|---|
| Comments | |
|---|---|
| Mexico |
Acapulco – No deferral |
| Caribbean |
Bahamas – No deferral, except for travel to Great Exuma Island which would make donor ineligible to donate for one year after return. |
| Belize |
Belize City – No deferral |
| Costa Rica |
Provinces of San Jose, Cartago, Puntarenas and Limon City (Jaco Beach, Quepos, Manuel Antonio Park) -no deferral |
| El Salvador |
Cities of San Salvador, San Miguel, San Vincente, Sonsonate, and Chalatenango- no deferral. |
| Guatemala |
Large cities including Antigua, Lake Atitlan and Guatemala City – no deferral |
| India |
Not eligible for 12 months after return. |
| Panama |
Panama City and Canal area are acceptable. |
| Venezuela |
Large cities along coast (Caracas, Maracaibo, Valencia) are acceptable. |
| Ecuador |
Large cities in central highlands acceptable (Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca) and Galapagos Islands – no deferral |
| Peru |
Large cities south of Lima, Cusco, Machupicchu – no deferral |
| Azerbaijan |
Risk in all areas except no risk in Baku |
| Africa |
Algeria – No deferral unless travel to Ihrir or Illizi province |
| Saudi Arabia |
No deferral for cities along East Coast, Jeddah, Mecca, Medina, Taif, Riyadh, risk in Al Bahah, Al Madinah, Asir, Jizan, Makkah, Najran an Tabuk provinces. |
| China |
Large cities and typical tourist areas including Yangtze River cruise – no deferral. |
| United Kingdom |
No deferral unless stayed for more than 3 months between 1980 and 1996 |
| Europe |
|
|
No deferral unless stayed for more than 6 months associated with the military between 1980 and 1996 or stayed for more than 5 years from 1980 to the present |
PS
I made my first blood donation at the Rock River Valley Blood Center on Thursday, January 14!! It was a BREEZE!! I now have to wait until March 11 to make my next one. I will keep you posted. ![]()
PSS:
I am so committed to this, I have challeged Bruce Poon Tip and Gap Adventures to a blood drive. If they will conduct a blood drive, I will give $5 per donor (up to $500, HEY! I am just a one woman operation) to Planeterra in March. Of course, Bruce has accepted! So the challenge is ON!!
I hope I have a couple of REALLY good months… now that I have laid down the gauntlet! ![]()
For more information about blood donation and to make your appointment, check the links below or contact your local blood bank:
Americans: Make your appointment here
Follow the American Red Cross on Twitter
Follow the Canadian Blood Service on Twitter
Follow Gap Adventures on Twitter
Follow Bruce Poon Tip on Twitter
