Blood
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What does a first‑time blood donor experience during the donation process?
Okay, so today I'm dealing with a bit of personal shame. Hey, I'm Joel Werner, how are you doing?
That's me, thanks for having me today. It's a pleasure, always.
Up until a few weeks ago. Do
you want to start with getting ready to donate?
Yeah, let's do it. I'd never donated blood. It
just stings a little bit when it goes in, but once it's in you shouldn't feel it.
So?
I did. Alright, Joel, if you could do a couple of little squeezes. Perfect. I've just found the vein. I'm just going to pop some antiseptic on the skin. Little sting. Now that's the worst bit over with. And all you need to do now is just be relaxed. And everything was
going according to plan. Right. Yeah, I feel good. Thanks. Until I mentioned I was feeling a bit woozy.
That is probably a sign that you're having a mild reaction to the donation. It's what we call a vasovagal reaction. It's your body allowing your blood pressure to drop. So in that instance we need to take the needle out and stop the donation so it doesn't progress to anything more than just a little bit of wooziness and lightheadedness.
How far in did I get? How how much did you collect?
Half the donation. So we're in good shape. So what you felt is
Quite common for first-time donors.
Amanda Tyson is a senior research assistant at the Australian Red Cross Blood Service and she investigates the human side of blood donation.
Donors who've never donated before tend to feel a bit overwhelmed, a little bit more anxious than you like to say, maybe a bit dizzy, light-headed. So it's not uncommon, so don't feel bad. And the nurses are trained to pick up really slight symptoms when you've got the really big sticker on your chest saying first time donor, which is also an indication saying, okay, this donor is a high risk donor of feeling these type of symptoms. So if you do say one of the trigger words the be very careful with you and just try to stop the donation.
And is that because fainting is kind of like that's the kind of adverse event that would stop people going back to give blood again?
Yeah, so the chance of a donor actually coming back after they've had a mild reaction like you've had really decreases their rate about sixty percent, I'd say we don't see donors come back ever again.
I I will come back, I promise. I haven't been back yet, but I'll I promise I'll come back. Hey, I'm Joel Werner, this is the Health Report, and today it's Blood Three Ways. Three stories from the world of blood stories, a lot more compelling than my own run-in with the needle. And up first, someone who puts my one-time half-bag donation to shame.
One regular blood donor, her name is Sarah. She donates like r as regularly as you can every three months.
Um, yeah, my parents donated I guess they started when they were fairly young 'cause I know They both got up to a hundred donations.
Why do some donors have a vasovagal reaction and how is it managed?
And I just started probably when I was eighteen. I couldn't even remember when I started. In those days it used to be every twelve weeks, I think it was. Obviously there are times you didn't go in when you you missed it or you forgot about it or You know, when I had the kids I couldn't donate for a while, but you know, I've been regularly donating since I guess I was eighteen, which is a fair few years.
But Sarah's not your typical donor.
Yeah, so my blood isn't transfused into anything. Um it's on what they call a phenocell panel.
Sarah doesn't donate to have her donation given to a patient.
Rihannan McBean is a senior scientist at the biotech startup Illoom, but before that, she did a PhD with the blood service.
She donates so that her blood can be divided up into little vials and essentially sent all around the country. So if you're getting your blood typed in a hospital, so they don't know if you're ABO or RH pos or ned or just to confirm what you are, they use Sarah's red blood cells as well as other donors.
Sarah and donors like her, whose blood's used on these testing panels, they have blood that's really well profiled. So beyond knowing that, say, she's O positive, they need to know all 36 of Sarah's blood groups.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What does a first‑time blood donor experience during the donation process?
0:00–2:54
2
Why do some donors have a vasovagal reaction and how is it managed?
2:54–11:05
3
How was a never‑before‑identified blood type discovered and named after a donor?
11:05–20:14
4
What scientific steps were taken to prove this new blood type was unique?
20:14–26:23
5
How does the International Society of Blood Transfusion officially recognise a new blood group?
26:23–28:27
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