Donating Blood - how long...

Theremin

do you have to wait after having some hash to donate blood? Friend of mine wants to donate because of the current crisis and wouldn't like the hassle of being asked uncomfortable questions.

sutty

Yes you do and I think they ask you not to give blood with in 3 months or something if I remember. They also will ask you these questions anyway.

WhiteWashMan

the uncomforatble questions are there for safety of people.

personally, i dont want the blood of someone who does drugs if i happen to be unfortauntely enough to need it.
i suggest you ask the blood board. they would seem to be the experts in this area.

nesf

I've "heard" 3-6 months. I've not seen any official figures for it tbh.

Sleepy

24 hours. I gave blood about a month ago and was asked did I ever use drugs. I answered truthfully that I smoke hash once or twice a week (used to be a lot more) and was then asked "have you smoked in the last 24 hours?" which I was able to answer that I hadn't.

All traces of hash leave your body in a few days and apparently any trace there after 24 hours doesn't make your blood any less useful to the Blood Transfusion Board.

You'll be asked uncomfortable questions anyway, some of the questions seem completely ridiculous to be asked but it's easy to see why they have to ask them. Giving blood is something I'm proud to do and kudos to your 'friend' for doing it.

IANOC

it soaks into your fatty cells and can linger there from anything from 3-6 months
so i would say your blood would not be ideal even after 3 months :eek:

nesf

Exclusion rules: from Oasis.ie

You should never donate blood if you are in one of the following groups:

* You are a male who has had sex with another male
* You have ever used a needle to take drugs of any kind
* You or your partner is HIV positive
* You have had jaundice after the age of 13 years or you contracted jaundice under the age of 13 years that was caused by Hepatitis B or C
* You have spent more than one year in the United Kingdom between 1 January 1980 and 31 December 1996 (this is to protect against any risk of vCJD transmission via blood). The United Kingdom includes England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
* You have received a blood transfusion in the Republic of Ireland since 1 January 1980.

You should not donate blood for 12 months if:

* You have visited a Malarial Area
* You have had any part of your body pierced
* You have had a tattoo
* You received acupuncture by a non-medically registered practitioner
* You gave birth to a baby
* You received a blood transfusion.

You should not donate blood for 6 months if you have had major surgery or you have visited a tropical area.

You should not donate blood for 1 month if you have had contact with infectious diseases (where you have not been previously infected), e.g., chicken pox, mumps, measles or German measles.

You should not donate blood for 2 weeks if you have recently recovered from the flu or have just completed a course of antibiotics.

You should not donate blood for 1 week if you have a cold sore, a cold or an uncomplicated dental extraction or have been on short-term medication.

If you are on long-term medication, you should contact the IBTS before donating.

You can donate blood if you are on Hormone Replacement Therapy or are taking the oral contraceptive pill.

If you are in any doubt about whether you can donate blood, you can e-mail the IBTS at info@ibts.ie or contact the IBTS Information Line at 1850 731 137.

The Irish Blood Transfusion Site doesn't have any direct info it. They do have an email address for questions though: info@ibts.ie

Maybe email them if you are very interested in knowing. It's confidential afaik.

Boston

I'm of the mindset to say fuk 'em. There is no blood crisis, they spout this out every year to keep supplies up. It's what allows them to so blatently descriminant. I've a sem-rare blood type, and I would give blood if I was allowed, but I'm not, so as I say fuk 'em.

*Page*

When you join you will start to recive letters they will tell you when you can donate! every three months for me..

nesf

LiouVille wrote:

I'm of the mindset to say fuk 'em. There is no blood crisis, they spout this out every year to keep supplies up. It's what allows them to so blatently descriminant. I've a sem-rare blood type, and I would give blood if I was allowed, but I'm not, so as I say fuk 'em.

Well, they discriminate for good reason generally.


I'm not allowed give blood. But I can appreciate why.

Boston

I'm not allowed give blood and I can appreciate why as well. The public need to have faith in the quality of the blood given to them. The public don't have faith in blood from someone like moi. So the blood board panders to stereotypes, mispreceptions, and unfounded fears, all in the name of public convidence.

eth0_

iirc the blood board SELL the blood to the hospitals, unlike in the UK where health boards operate it.

I think their ban on people who've lived in the UK giving blood is faintly ridiculous, what makes an Irish person who has lived here all his/her life and eaten meat products from the UK (which the majority of frozen meat products are) any less likely to be a carrier of CJD?

I do give blood when i'm in Belfast at least twice a year.

WhiteWashMan

nesf wrote:

Well, they discriminate for good reason generally.


I'm not allowed give blood. But I can appreciate why.

is it because you are gay?

i give blood every three months. in fact, they phone me up every day until i do give blood when three months comes around again.
but since i live right next door to the place the do it, its no big hassle. besides, it means i can go home from owrk a few hours early. go me!

nesf

WhiteWashMan wrote:

is it because you are gay?

i give blood every three months. in fact, they phone me up every day until i do give blood when three months comes around again.
but since i live right next door to the place the do it, its no big hassle. besides, it means i can go home from owrk a few hours early. go me!

No, it's because of my blood pressure. They don't want to take blood from me cause it's high (due to meds).

The whole gay issue, is a bit annoying but doesn't really apply to me.

Edit: Bluntly, I've never had penitrative sex with a man. If you really want to know.

Beruthiel

LiouVille wrote:

There is no blood crisis.

there was this weekend, at least in Galway, my Dad was going in for an op and it had to be put off a few days till they got more in

Boston

A National blood Crisis would be a dramatic reduction in the reserves of blood. This is not the case. Specific hospitals may be short specific blood types on any given day but that is a shortage. If your father op could not have been prosponded they probably would have had the reserves.

Nesf, to be blunt, they don't make the destinction between penetration sex and oral sex.

nesf

LiouVille wrote:

Nesf, to be blunt, they don't make the destinction between penetration sex and oral sex.

Touche.

*shrugs*

I can't say it is a very PC or nice rule, but they did have good reason originally. Maybe that reason isn't valid anymore though.

Boston

nesf wrote:

Touche.

*shrugs*

I can't say it is a very PC or nice rule, but they did have good reason originally. Maybe that reason isn't valid anymore though.

Fear of an unknown desease, spreading through an underground community, with no means of screening for, and no clue exactly how it was tranmitted other then though blood and sex. None of that is true today.

dudara

I'm not allowed give blood due to the fact that I had heart surgery as a child. Apparently major surgery like this leaves you at a life-long higher risk of bllod infection, and while my blood is fine, they're more concerned with giving me an infection by means of the needle.

I'm kind of peed off at this, because I used to give blood regularly before, until this new rule came into play. I had major surgery and I'd like to repay the favour.

Sleepy

LiouVille, I appreciate that you're discriminated against by the organisation and agree that it's ridiculous to refuse to take someone's blood because of their sexuality, but please don't dissuade people who do qualify to give blood from doing so. It literally can be the difference between life and death. Transfused Blood is only usable for a relatively short window of time so they need all the donations they can get.

eth0_, while I'm far from certain of this, I'm sure the idea of the blood transfusion board charging hospitals for blood is a preventative measure to prevent individual hospitals from requesting more than they need of given blood-types to ensure the most equitable distribution of blood possible. Both bodies are government run and funded from the same budget so any cross-charging really doesn't effect how tax-payers money is being spent. If the blood service was a private company, sure I'd be outraged at charging hospitals for something given freely but given the broader environment, a nominal charge for blood would makes perfect logistical sense.

nesf

Sleepy wrote:

LiouVille, I appreciate that you're discriminated against by the organisation and agree that it's ridiculous to refuse to take someone's blood because of their sexuality, but please don't dissuade people who do qualify to give blood from doing so. It literally can be the difference between life and death. Transfused Blood is only usable for a relatively short window of time so they need all the donations they can get.

Well said.

Theremin

I'm gonna answer the questions truthfully anyway (let's dispense with this 'friend' malarkey). It's just that I want to know if there's any point in me doing the interview. Regards hash, I'm gonna go with what the guy who actually did this interview recently said (24 hours).

Now then, how about ecstacy? Not in 6 months and no intention to again anytime soon. Long enough?

dudara

I'd truthfully say that your best bet is to contact the blood board via that email address yourself.

passive

regarding the hash: you're fine as long as it wasn't within 24 hours

and at that i think it's really just "for the sake of it" or so people aren't there stoned, rather than because it has any effect on the blood (methinks). I gave blood over easter and had to politely ask the hash question myself (it didn't come up, they asked about cocaine and stuff like that).

"umm.. about drugs. i do occasionally smoke cannibas. is that a problem?"
"when did you last smoke some?"
"umm..yesterday"
"yesterday...morning?"
"umm....afternoon"
"you should be okay"

While we're on the topic: I presume mushroom & acid are "no no"s to giving blood for a long time? wouldn't have noted it at the time but vaguely considering summer experiences so i'd like to know if i should give blood before that if it's going to make me ineligible for a while.

thanks. (edit: http://www.ibts.ie/generic.cfm?mID=2&sID=79 only mentioned needly drugs)

Tar.Aldarion

for drugs they said to me amonth or 3 months cant remember but they werent specific about type of drug

tk123

Yaay - i jst mailed them to ask if i can still donate cos of my thyroid medicines...Now do they give you a can of coke etc after donating so you don't pass out?

Tobias Greeshman

tk123 wrote:

Now do they give you a can of coke etc after donating so you don't pass out?

Or the most pityfull glass of guinness I've ever seen! I was lead to believe it was a pint, how wrong I was

eth0_

How can gay men be banned from giving blood when it is a scientifically proven fact that heterosexuals are the biggest spreaders of the disease?

*Sassy*

Anyone know how long after other drugs eg. coke, E?

Thanks for that making that point Sleepy about why the blood board charge the hospitals, I hadn't thought of that and it does make perfect sense.

egan007

Theremin wrote:

do you have to wait after having some hash to donate blood? Friend of mine wants to donate because of the current crisis and wouldn't like the hassle of being asked uncomfortable questions.

6 weeks - What's his problem if he's man enough to smoke it he should be an enough to admit it. uncomfortable questions - like whens the last time a man took you from behind?? They ask em all......tell him get over it

kenmc

i have never seen anything about not donating haven taken drugs, except intraveneously. They don't ask do you drink much, or smoke much. I think they're more worried about infections than ppl getting high off someone elses blood.