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Thursday, January 11, 2007
I gave blood to thank those who gave to my son
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
My son needed two blood transfusions in the early days of his life.
Neither Joann nor I could donate because such units must be in stock long before it’s needed. Before you donate, you have to be screened and tested, too, to see if you’re a match.
Fortunately, someone, somewhere - strangers - had already stepped up for Miles, and for that, we’re extremely grateful.
Our medical emergency took place nearly 12 years ago. At that moment, I made a vow to become a blood donor. It was a no-brainer at the time, a way to say thank you, to benefit others.
And there’s always a need. Especially this time of the year when donations are down locally and nationwide and companies, organizations and churches haven’t hosted blood drives because everybody’s focused on the holidays. Folks are on vacation. Schools, which account for about 20 percent of donations, are closed. So throughout the holidays and most of January, the blood supply is much lower. Sometimes critically so.
“We hold fewer blood drives during December and January, which, obviously, results in fewer people donating blood,” said Cammie J. Barnes, spokeswoman for the American Red Cross Blood Services Southern Region.
But hospitals remain filled with patients who need it. Every year, the American Red Cross sends blood to 130 hospitals across Georgia, including Gwinnett Medical Center (about 9,500 units of red blood cells) andastside Medical Center (about 2,600 units of red blood cells).
On Wednesday, as part of the Badie Tour, I chose to be a life-saver. I gave blood. So did Jeff Thrutchley of Lawrenceville.
He told me he donated regularly as a college student but dropped the practice in later years. After the Sept. 11 terrorist strike, though, he took it up again. Now he gives about every 60 days - “consistently,” he said while we waited to donate at the Duluth donor center off Sugarloaf Parkway.
Richard Werblow of Dacula dropped by to stress the daily need for platelet donors. Platelets help form clots to stop bleeding. Cancer and leukemia patients, among others, need lots of them. Most people can give platelets every two weeks, up to 24 times each year; blood can be donated every 56 days.
Werblow was a regular donor of both. Then his veins collapsed. “I started donating blood when I was in my 20s,” said Werblow, 65. “Just wanted to do some goodness.”
Most people assume they are unable to donate because they are on antidepressants, or take medications to curb cholesterol and blood pressure. Often, that’s not the case, Barnes and others told me.
If you have a low threshold for pain, I’m here to tell you: That 18-gauge needle stings initially, but it’s bearable.
And in this case, the pain is well worth the gain.
The Duluth Donor Center is located at 3090 Premiere Parkway, Suite 500. Hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays; 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesdays; and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. For information about blood donations or to find a blood drive near you, call 1-800-448-3543 or visit www.givebloodredcross.org
Rick Badie’s column appears on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Contact him at 770-263-3875 or e-mail: rbadie@ajc.com
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