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An Appeal from Cheryl McGrath,
Baystate Health Blood Donor Recruiter
Critical Need for Platelet Donors
Attention all donors! We need your help! Due to the holidays and weather conditions recently, platelet donations are at a critical level. All blood types are needed. If you are a platelet donor, please call Baystate Health’s Donor Center at 413-794-4600 to make an appointment to donate.
The Donor Center is located on the first floor of the Daly building at BMC. We book platelet donors Monday, Thursday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, appointments are from noon to 6 p.m.
To donate platelets you must be at least 17 years old, weigh a minimum of 110 pounds, be in general good health and have not taken aspirin or anything with aspirin in it for at least 48 hours.
Your platelet donation is critical to the patients we treat at Baystate Health hospitals and facilities and we greatly appreciate your help.
Thank you.
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Baystate Health Blood Donor Center needs new platelet donors! Platelets are important in the control of bleeding and are generally used in patients with leukemia and other forms of cancer, open heart surgery patients, transplant patients, and some trauma patients. Since they must be used within five days, maintaining an adequate supply is always a challenge.
The Blood Donor Center now has new, state-of-the-art plateletpheresis machines called Trima’s that are faster, provide a better product, and …this is the big news…uses only one needle!
Please make your appointment to donate platelets today. For more information, or to make an appointment, call 413-794-4600. The Blood Donor Center is located on the first floor of the Daly building. Our hours are Monday, Thursday, and Friday 8am-4pm….Tuesday and Wednesday 12 noon-8pm.
| Platelet donors must meet the same age, weight and health standards as whole-blood donors and also submit to screening interviews. |
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Platelet donors must also avoid some medications:
- Plavix
- Aspirin or medications containing aspirin five days prior to the donation.
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (ibuprofen, Motrin, Advil, etc.) within three days of the donation.
We currently have an urgent need for new blood platelet donors.
If you want to donate platelets, call the BMC Blood Donor Center at 413-794-4600 or visit us to discuss your suitability as a platelet donor. We may ask you initially to make a whole blood donation.
FACTS FOR PLATELET DONORS
- Platelet donation takes 1½ to two hours.
- Our video library can help you pass the time.
- We draw blood from one arm, process it in a centrifuge to extract the platelets, and then return the remaining blood via a needle in the donor's other arm.
- Eat a good meal prior to donating.
- You may donate platelets up to 24 times in any 12-month period, or about once every two weeks – unlike whole blood donors who must wait eight weeks before another donation of any type.
