In Canada, I donated blood fairly regularly, encouraged by the examples set by my parents and grandparents.
Here, I've been more cautious. The Red Cross of Canada had some problems somewhat before I started to donate and I was concerned about
hygiene and sterile condition here.
I watched how the process worked and was satisfied; single use needles, bags and tubing, and even the swabs used to disinfect were unsealed in front of me and immediately discarded.
I looked at the Bloodmobile as being a little too temporary or somehow lacking in solidity (and the bus did rock as candidates boarded or left -400
grams lighter). Still, the blood donor clinic in my hometown arrived in trucks and was set up only for the day in a recreation centre, and the staff here were skilled and experienced.
In the picture below, we see a candidate on the left, filling out the required form. Soon, he will go into the private chamber behind him, take a blood-density test and confirm a few of the questions verbally. The nurse inside the privacy booth spoke no English but was comforted by my Canadian blood donor card and insistence that I was an appropriate candidate. She checked the boxes in the questionnaire in the correct order of '
yes's and '
no's (for the record, I think it was no, yes, then no all the way down).
To the right, in the picture are two people who have completed their donation and recovering with drinks and snacks.
The nurse here found my vein (or artery, I don't know) with no trouble. I've never had trouble in that regard, though so I really can't say she was much better or worse than Canadian nurses. I'm quite proud of my blood donor abilities, in fact. Plug me in and don't go far because it won't take long - funny, my wife was saying the same thing, the other day.
In Canada, one can donate blood every two months or so. I don't know how long one must wait here. I will donate again but I can wait; I was unusually dizzy for the afternoon and evening. The inside of my elbow remains bruised four days later.
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