Venice Gives Blood

A+student+donating+blood.

Melina Torres

A student donating blood.

Desmond Andersen, News Reporter

Venice High School conducted its semi-annual blood drive this past Nov. 13. The Associated Student Body Leadership had partnered with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to provide the opportunity for students to donate a pint of blood for those in need.

A total of 139 Venice students participated in the drive, altogether donating approximately 13.6 gallons of blood.

โ€œItโ€™s important to donate blood because you are helping another person,โ€ explained one of the phlebotomists working at the event. โ€œAnd itโ€™s also good for you because it generates your new healthy red blood cells.โ€

Phlebotomy is the medical practice of drawing blood, typically via a needle from a personโ€™s vein in a process known as venipuncture.

The donation process involved filling out some paperwork including a brief health-survey, undergoing a mini-physical assessment, the venipuncture itself, and finally a mandatory 15-minute resting period. Free snacks and a t-shirt were provided to students who donated.

โ€œ[The Cedars-Sinai staff were] super nice and comforting,โ€ recalls junior Ty Chavez. โ€œI was very nervous but everybody calmed my nerves. There were a lot of people around me who were feeling the same, so we were all in it together. [The venipuncture] is rough while itโ€™s happening but afterwards you get this overwhelming good feeling. Iโ€™ve never donated before so it was a new experience for me.โ€

โ€œIf you guys didnโ€™t donate this year, make sure you come next semester,โ€ said ASB member Almond McKinley, who was volunteering at the drive.

Donating blood for transfusions helps save lives during emergencies and sustain those with certain blood conditions and disorders. Around 5 million people need blood transfusions in the United States annually, according to the website of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

โ€œThere is a constant need for regular blood supply because blood can be stored for only a limited time before use,โ€ according to the World Health Organization. โ€œRegular blood donations by a sufficient number of healthy people are needed to ensure that safe blood will be available whenever and wherever it is needed.โ€

Requirements to donate include being at least 16 years old, meeting weight criteria, and being in good health. The next blood drive will take place next semester.