Plasma Takes To The Road

As the needle pricked and entered Michele Meliota's vein, her mind whirled, not from the pain of the metal spike in her arm, but from the high of knowing that she could be saving a life.

Meliota is one of the few daring souls willing to enter the Bloodmobile, lie on a cot and make a donation.

The Bloodmobile has become essential to the operations of the Northern California Community Blood Bank, accounting for about 50 percent of the program's donations. Peggy Corbett, director of donor recruitment, says the bloodmobiles' secret to success is simple: "Convenience-that's the key!"

The mobile collection unit provides just that, scouting territory from Garberville to Crescent City and as far inland as Willow Creek, searching for voluntary donors. The phlebotomist road crew works hard, traveling to several locations during the week and keeping a tight schedule; the only day off is Monday, when the unit undergoes maintenance.

Through this aggressive strategy, the blood bank has been able to expand its services to serve six counties.

The Bloodmobile represents just part of a program that has found relative success on the North Coast. While the current supply is slightly lower than in previous years, the Northern California Community Blood Bank is doing better than blood banks on the national average in collecting donations.  Corbett say it's in part due to the "rural area and family atmosphere."

"Donors here donate more times than donors on the national average," said Corbett. "It's a great community.  When donors are needed they come out of the woodwork.

Statistically, 60 percent of the country's residents are viable donors; of these, only an average of 5 percent actually makes contributions. The remaining 40 percent are considered "permanently deferred," meaning they cannot give blood for one of a number of reasons, including exposure to possibly contaminated needles or sexual partners.

"We've lost a lot of donors due to tattoos and body piercings lately, "said Corbett.  She also noted that there were a large number of temporary deferrals because more and more people are traveling to Central and South America.

"It's cheaper and more accessible than most of the tropical resorts," she said.  And while vaccinations are required when flying to many island resorts outside of the US, no such precautions are required when driving back and forth across the border.

Part of the blood bank's shortcomings are due to the fact that some of these temporary deferrals aren't temporary.  According to Corbett, many donors who are deferred aren't coming back.

"Giving blood is a habit that you get into, and one that's easy to get out of," she said.

Yet despite these hardships, the Bloodmobile manages as many as 25 donors a day, depending largely on location and weather.  By working closely with donors in an effort to promote the blood bank's cause, Corbett has come to classify those donors who go the extra mile.

"World War II veterans are the best donors, largely because they've been through the war and understand the importance of the blood bank," she said.

"Unfortunately, they're getting older and few are available to make donations.

She said those in the Baby Boomer generation were the least likely to donate, calling them the "selfish, 'me-me' generation."

"They're using more from the supplies without donating to contribute anything back," she said.

Of the organization's most recent promotional efforts, Corbett said the current concentration "is now on high school and college students. They're the up-and-coming group."

The Bloodmobile mirrors this goal, appearing regularly at local high schools as well as on the HSU quad.

"Every Tuesday and Thursday I'd walk by, and I'd say to myself, 'I should donate.'"

While the effort took great pains, the rewards were well worth it.

"I feel like I'm saving a life," said Meliotta.  "People need blood, and I have it."

"Oh yeah," she added, "and I get a free muffin afterwards."