(6) Age or date of birth: blood donors must be at least 17 years of age with
the following exceptions:
(a) Donors who are considered minors under local law may be
accepted only if written consent to donate blood has been obtained in accordance with
local law.
(b) Elderly donors should be evaluated by the blood bank physician
and this evaluation should be documented as part of the permanent record of that
donation. Elderly individuals may donate with the blood bank physician's permission if
they meet other donor criteria.
(c) Autologous donations: There are no age limits for drawing blood
for autologous use, though each patient or donor must be evaluated to determine if it is
safe to collect blood.
(7) Consent for the blood bank to take and use blood from a prospective
donor must be obtained in writing. The consent form is part of the Donor Record and is
usually completed at time of registration. A qualified person should explain the
procedure in terms the donor understands. The donor must have an opportunity to ask
questions and to decide whether or not to give consent by signing the form. The blood
bank staff member should then sign as witness to the donor's signature or note refusal
(see figure 1-1).
b. The following information is not required but may be useful:
(1)
Additional identification such as social security number.
(2) Time of last meal. Fasting is not recommended and donors who have
not eaten within the past four to 6 hours should be sent to the refreshment area for a
light snack.
(3)
Name of intended recipient or donor group.
(a) Full name of patient and hospital or donor group is important to
ensure proper credit.
(b) A record of deferred donors may be useful to the patient or to
others concerned with donor recruitment or credit accounts.
MD0845
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