Important Donor Information

To ensure your blood donation experience is safe…

Accuracy and Honesty are Essential

Complete honesty and accuracy in answering all screening questions prior to donation is very important for the safety of patients who receive blood transfusions. All information provided is confidential. Our ability to obtain full, honest, and complete information about donor health and behaviors is often more important to the safety of the blood supply than having blood to test in the laboratory.

Donation Process

To determine eligibility to donate we will:

• Ask questions about donor health, travel, and medicines.
• Ask questions to assess if a donor might be at risk for transfusion transmissible diseases.
• Take donor blood pressure, temperature, and pulse.
• Take a small blood sample to ensure donors are not anemic.

When deemed able to donate we will:

• Cleanse the arm with an antiseptic (please tell us if you are allergic to chlorahexadine or iodine).
• Use a new, sterile, disposable needle to collect blood.

Donor Eligibility – Specific Information

Travel to (or Birth in) Other Countries

Blood donor tests may not be available for some transmissible diseases that are found only in certain countries. If you were born in, have lived in, or visited certain countries, you may not be eligible to donate.

Sexual Contact

Why we ask questions about sexual contact:

Sexual contact may cause transmissible diseases to get into the bloodstream and be spread through transfusions to someone else.

Definition of sexual contact:

The terms sexual contact or sex are used in some of the questions you will be asked. These can mean different things to each of us, but in keeping with federal guidelines these terms apply to any of the activities below, whether or not a condom or other protection was used.

• Vaginal sex (contact between penis and vagina).
• Oral sex (mouth or tongue on someone’s vagina, penis, or anus).
• Anal sex (contact between penis and anus).

HIV/AIDS Risk Behaviors and Symptoms

AIDS is caused by HIV. HIV is spread mainly through sexual contact with an infected person or by sharing needles or syringes used for injecting drugs.

Ineligible Donors:

• Have AIDS or have ever had a positive HIV test.
• Have ever used needles to take drugs, steroids, or anything not prescribed by a doctor.
• A male who has had sexual contact with another male, even once, since 1977.
• Have ever taken money, drugs or other payment for sex since 1977.
• Have had sexual contact in the past 12 months with anyone described above.
• Have had syphilis or gonorrhea in the past 12 months.
• Have been in juvenile detention, lockup, jail or prison for more than 72 hours in the last 12 months.
• Have any of the following conditions that can be signs or symptoms of HIV/AIDS:
  1. Unexplained weight loss or night sweats.
  2. Blue or purple spots in the mouth or on the skin.
  3. Swollen lymph nodes for more than one month.
  4. White spots or unusual spots in the mouth.
  5. Cough that won’t go away or shortness of breath.
  6. Diarrhea that won’t go away.
  7. Fever of more than 100.5 degrees F for more than 10 days.

Remember that HIV can be passed to someone else through blood transfusions even when feeling well and having a negative HIV test. Tests cannot detect infections for a period of time after an individual is exposed to HIV. Do not give blood only as a means for an AIDS or hepatitis test. Confidential AIDS testing is available at the local health department or call 1.800.322.AIDS for more information.

What Happens After Donation

To protect patients, blood is tested for transfusion transmissible diseases. If a donor’s blood tests positive, it will not be transfused to a patient. Donors will be notified about test results that may disqualify them from donating in the future.

Do not donate to be tested for HIV, hepatitis, or any other infections.

Confidentiality of Screening and Test Results

Blood centers are required to keep a confidential list of names whose blood might be harmful to patients. If medical history or blood test results are unclear or if they show that a donor’s blood might make someone sick, his name will be placed on this list. This list is strictly confidential.

IMPORTANT

To let us know if your blood should not be given to another person, please call the Donor Self-Exclusion Hotline 1.800.392.6551, ext. 1099.

It is important that you do not donate blood to be tested for AIDS.

Confidential AIDS testing is available at these County Health Departments:

Upstate Prevention: 1.888.232.2310

SC AIDS/STD Hotline: 1.800.322.AIDS

Abbeville County
905 W. Greenwood Street
Abbeville, SC 29620
864.366.2131

Greenville County
200 University Ridge
Greenville, SC 29601
864.282.4274

Greenwood County
1736 South Main Street
Greenwood, SC 29646
864.942.3600

Laurens County
93 Human Services Road
Clinton, SC 29325
864.833.0000

McCormick County
204 Hwy 28
McCormick, SC 29835
864.852.2511

Newberry County
2111 Wilson Road
Newberry, SC 29108
803.321.2170

Oconee County

Seneca Clinic
609 North Townville Street
Seneca, SC 29678
864.882.2245

Walhalla Clinic
200 Booker Drive
Walhalla, SC 29691
864.638.4170

Pickens County
200 McDaniel Avenue
Pickens, SC 29671
864.898.5965

Stephens County
222 North Boulevard
Toccoa, GA 30577
706.282.4507