I wanted to share my story, because donating blood potentially saved my life.

Ok so it’s not as if there’s a spot on e-Harmony or MySpace to list if you are Type O or AB negative right? But across the world in Japan your blood type can be so much more than just a letter or two; it’s a reflection of character traits and personality differences that may or may not make for a good relationship match. Seem like a foreign concept – but then again when’s the last time you flipped to the horoscope section in your favorite newspaper or magazine?

My older sister Kat spent a year teaching English to junior high kids in Japan so I asked her if she had ever heard of the blood type interest. “Of course! My students used to always want to know my blood type and then giggle about it.” And if you still don’t believe me check out these cell phone charms you can buy online.

So just in case you want to start using these methods when checking our potential dates or friendships here are the characteristics of each type:

Japanese Blood Type Personality Chart (from Wikipedia)

Type A: Best Traits: Creative, sensible; Worst Traits:Fastidious, overearnest.
Type B: Best Traits: Wild, a doer, cheerful; Worst Traits:Selfish, irresponsible.
Type AB: Best Traits: Cool, controlled, rational; Worst Traits:Critical, indecisive.
Type O: Best Traits:Agreeable, sociable, an optimist; Worst Traits:Vain, careless.

Don’t know your type? That’s just one more reason to come up to Blood Centers of the Pacific and donate!

Ever wondered why you’re asked a lot of questions about recent travel when you come to donate blood?  The most common reason is because of malaria.

Malaria is a disease that’s caused by a parasite that is transmitted to humans through those pesky little buggers, mosquitoes.  The disease is more common in certain areas of the world, which are referred to as malaria endemic regions.  But if malaria is transmitted via mosquitoes and mosquitoes are not blood donors (thankfully), why do blood centers care so much about malaria?

As someone who has struggled with a rare blood cancer for over four decades and who has lately been living on the benevolence of our local blood donors, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude. 
       
With the current, raging controversy over America’s system of health care, our community is extremely fortunate to have a reliable pool of volunteer donors.
     
Blood Centers of the Pacific usually needs to collect between 400-500 units (roughly a pint) of blood each day, but depending on the number of surgeries, accidents and other factors, that number can easily rise. Since donated blood has a rather short shelf life of only 42 days (just five days for platelets), there is a constant need for replenishing the supply.

At times, even the most caring persons may wonder if anything they do in life has meaning, for such doubts are part of the human condition.  I hope blood donors realize how tremendously they touch or resurrect the lives of others, for, owing to privacy laws, blood recipients cannot acknowledge and thank the donors personally.

The day you donated blood you may have saved a baby’s or a child’s life. Your blood might have kept a mother alive or allowed a father to recuperate and continue to support his family. Your blood kept an educator teaching or an artist creating or allowed a farmer or a salesman or a businessman to persist in a profession that provides food, jobs or services.
     
So as you go about your mundane chores, please know that you’ve contributed greatly to the betterment of humanity, just as police officers, fire fighters, doctors, or nurses. Every day countless, misfortunate people are sustained because of your generosity and altruism. Indeed, perhaps, with the exception of physicians and nurses, no one saves more lives than blood donors.

Viktor Frankl, in his famous and exquisite book, Man’s Search for Meaning, concludes that a dedication to the welfare of others is the most satisfying and meaningful gesture anyone can make. Life, according to Frankl, cannot feel hollow or purposeless when we are devoted to our fellow man. Although few of us can join the Peace Corp, or, like Mother Theresa, roam impoverished countries to aid the diseased or the destitute, blood donors should know that their thoughtful, selfless, and most charitable gift often yields unimaginable benefits, and in a very singular way they are the life force and the embodiment of the best of humanity. 

So on behalf of the countless recipients of this kindness, I hope the lives of our donors are blessed with love and peace.
Ron Russell
Pacific Grove, CA

What’s scarier than a haunted house, Count Dracula or eating way too much candy this Halloween?

Blood shortages (and that’s all year through)!

While everyone’s thinking candy corn, costumes and trick-or-treating, BCP’s thinking constantly of something that’s frightfully true – less than 4 percent of people donate blood.

Vampire Barbara Mendoza of Boston Properties was one of the many blood drive coordinators who helped us out this Halloween.  Organizing a blood drive at the Embarcadero Center, donors - we call them everyday heroes - came to help save lives and to enter the Costume Contest! All donors were also entered into a raffle to win some cool prizes.

To Barbara Mendoza, all our blood drive coordinators and blood donors, we’d like to say, “Fangs a lot” (oh, that was corny … maybe candy corny?) and here’s wishing y’all a Safe and Happy Halloween!

Donating blood…it’s not as scary as you think!

Tickets to the Exotic Erotic Ball?  A Smart Car giveaway?  Special Saw VI prizes?

It’s been an interesting couple of months here in the BCP Recruitment department but hey, we figure interesting is good.  Basically we’re open to anything that’ll help us reach new blood donors.

OK, I admit it. I’m a germaphobe.

Yes, I wait for someone else to open the restroom door and try to squeeze through while it’s still ever so slightly ajar…even if it means running over that unsuspecting (but god sent!) door-opener. If I really have to open the door, I use a paper towel for the door knob. Hand sanitizer? Yup, got that in my purse. But hey, before you roll your eyes or make a wisecrack, remember, it’s what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends to protect against the flu…well, sort of.

The CDC encourages everyone to take three steps to fight the flu:

Fire! Fire! Fire! When the fire alarm sounds, do you know what to do?

Here at the blood center, when we talk about safety, we’re usually referring to the safety of blood donation. And while that is 101 percent important (and in case you’re wondering, donating blood is completely safe), we’re also up to par with fire safety.

BCP celebrated National Fire Prevention week, Oct 4 to 10th, by educating our staff in fire safety and prevention. Fire Prevention week commemorates the great Chicago Fire – the two-day blaze that killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless and destroyed more than 17,000 buildings.

Incidentally, we recently had an unscheduled fire drill (yes, that guilty employee who microwaved popcorn for too long) but everyone got out safely and on time.

And last week, our employees got to play firefighter when they learned how to operate a fire extinguisher by putting out a controlled fire (there’s a pretty cool device that does this which you can see here). 

We learned that when using your extinguisher, remember “P.A.S.S.”
Pull the pin that unlocks the lever
Aim low, pointing the extinguisher nozzle or hose at the base of the fire
Squeeze the lever above the handle to discharge the extinguishing agent. To stop the discharge, release the lever
Sweep the nozzle or hose from side to side. Keep the nozzle aimed at the base of the fire and sweep back and forth until the flames are out.

Not only does fire prevention and preparation extend to the workplace but it can save your life in your home. So, take time to look around your home and remediate any potential fire hazards. Replace batteries in your smoke detectors and replace old fire extinguishers Inspect wiring, electrical cords, and properly dispose of any unused flammable products (paint, cleaning supplies, etc.)..

So the next time the fire alarm sounds, remember, it could be more than just burning popcorn.

Stay fire smart!