been registered and donating blood before they turn 63 We are not

been registered and donating blood before they turn 63. We are not able to donate blood anytime of our lives since when we are still adolescents our bodies are still developing and are in need of that blood and when we become elderly we may also need that blood to keep us alive a bit longer since we do not have as much blood as when we are young and we might also not have the strength to go through the whole process to donate blood. The donation process as a whole takes less than an hour to complete and the donation itself is only around 8 to 10 minutes. First and foremost, you first must prepare for the donation by researching online (if they are a new donor). Once he or she is content with what they have concluded they must fill in the questionnaire form stating whether or not they are able to give blood. If there are no complications and one is honestly certain they can give blood they are instructed to start drinking water. The donor needs to present themselves with id-card, passport, license or e-residents. After doing so the donor is weighed, checked for temperature checked for the haemoglobin level. A woman needs to weigh around 52Kg, have a height of 166cm and haemoglobin level of 12.5 g/dl (grams per decilitre). A man needs to weigh around 50Kg have a height of 172cm and haemoglobin level of 13.5 g/dl. Haemoglobin is a molecule of protein in the red blood cells that carries oxygen from lungs to the body and carbon dioxide from the body goes to the lungs and gives it that red colour. Haemoglobin vary on different people also depending on their age and gender with men having a higher haemoglobin level. The check for the haemoglobin level is done by taking a small drop of blood from the donor’s fingerprint and then placed in a special haemoglobin machine (haemo glucometer). If the haemoglobin level is good the donor is then moved to the donation room where he or she can lay comfortably on the couch and is instructed to loosen any clothing to prevent dizziness and faintness during the blood removal. The nurse explains what’s going to happen more so if they are new and then the skin disinfection and venepuncture site is performed. The donation is around 5 to 10 minutes and once the process is finished the patient is asked to keep hold of the vein to prevent blood loss. After the donation they end up with a blood donation of 475ml whole blood in the collection bag. At the beginning blood is also collected into three bottles as a sample. These bottles are used for screening of infectious diseases markers, blood grouping tests and antibodies. Everything is barcoded so that the person remains confidential. The donations are tested for HIV 1 & 2, Hepatitis B, C, Syphilis, to ensure the person receives the best blood as possible. A test for ABO and RhD is also carried out because they have the potential to cause severe haemolysis which is a breakdown of red cells in the recipient or haemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN). Tests are also done to distinguish the blood type of each patient. There are 8 main blood groups; A positive, A negative, B positive, B negative, O positive, O negative, AB positive and AB negative. 41% of Malta’s population is A positive and are capable of donating blood to people with A positive and AB positive. Second most common blood group is O positive being 38% of the Maltese population being able to donate to people with blood groups O positive, A positive, B positive and AB positive. The universal blood group is A positive because they are able to give blood to anyone. A negative as well as AB is known to be one of the rarest blood group in Malta. The blood groups are distinguished by blood group A having A antigens on the red blood cells with anti-B antibodies in the plasma, B having B antigens with anti-A antibodies in the plasma, O having no antigens, but both anti-A and anti-B antibodies in the plasma and AB having both A and B antigens, but no antibodies. Before going to the laboratory blood is mixed with a chemical that keeps it in liquid state and is also placed in an appropriate container that preserves its quality while the blood is being transferred from the donation area to the laboratory. The bags are filtered off from the white blood cells as they aren’t needed because they might attack a patient. The bags are placed in a centrifuge to be spun at a high velocity of 3770revs/min for 12 minutes, until they are split into the red blood cells plasma and platelets. The bags are transported to the hospitals on that day. Red cells are stored in a fridge between 20C to 60C for 42 days and are needed for patients suffering from excessive blood loss from accidents or surgery’s or else cancer. Plasma is kept in freezers at temperature of -250C or lower for 36