The Responsibilities of a Blood Donor

Donating blood is typically a pleasant experience, and it benefits the entire community. LifeSouth has a number of procedures that we apply routinely to every donor. These procedures help ensure your safety, as the blood donor, as well as the safety of the patient receiving your blood.

Interview Process
During a private interview, our staff member will ask you medical questions about your health and lifestyle. Note the following:

Some questions will be about sexual activity, illegal drug use, your travel history, and some infectious diseases. It is extremely important that you answer all questions truthfully. All information you give us is strictly confidential. If you feel uncomfortable about disclosing such information, you should not donate. If you do not want to answer a question during the interview, you can simply walk away with no questions asked.

Post-donation Activities
If you donate blood, we ask that, for the remainder of the day, you not participate in strenuous activity or in critical work where safety requires your maximum abilities. We ask you to avoid strenuous activity because performing strenuous activities after blood donation can cause you to feel lightheaded and possibly faint.

A Window Period
There is a period of time early in HIV infection when a person can be infectious and transmit the disease to a patient even though blood tests are negative. This is why LifeSouth cannot rely completely on lab tests to ensure the safety of patients who may receive your blood. We need your cooperation by having you truthfully answer all questions during the interview. This is your responsibility as a blood donor. If you want to find out your HIV status, do not donate blood, but rather contact the local Health Department where you can get a quick, anonymous, and free HIV test.

Testing
Your blood will be tested for various infectious agents. The test for the West Nile Virus (WNV) is unlicensed and part of a federally recommended research program.
Blood that tests positive for any infectious agent will not be used for transfusion. If any of your tests are positive, you may not be able to donate blood in the future. You can choose not to be tested, however, if you so choose, we can't accept your blood donation. Also note that sometimes tests are falsely positive which means that although your blood tests positive, you don't have the disease.

Notification
You will be notified by letter of any positive test that affects your status as a blood donor. You will also receive information about any recommended follow-up course of action. Notification may be delayed up to 50 days. It may be necessary to draw additional samples to better understand and interpret the results.