EXCITEMENT.
That is exactly what i felt the moment that my classmate told me that we are required to bring our donor for our BB laboratory class; for those who are not into the field, BB is Blood Banking :))
Learning how to bleed a donor is one thing i am really INTERESTED. I am an advocate of Giving/Donating Blood. In fact, i am a regular blood donor. I am willing to give a part of me (like my blood) to whoever who needs it. This is because i believe that giving blood can be a way of thanking GOD.
So being a part of the donation process is indeed a significant experience to me. Not only as a Medical technologist but also as a person who is thankful to the good health condition that GOD has given me.
The first thing i did is to find a donor, i browsed into my phone contacts and saw Web’s number (a medtech 3rd year friend).
i texted him saying: “can i ask for a favor?”
he immediately replied: sure. what is it?
me: i hope you wont change your mind after you hear this.
web: lol. seems like i knew it already.
me: yes. i need a donor for the BB class.
i got so nervous, thinking he’ll change his mind. but to my surprise he still said “YES, ako na donor mo” :))
i asked him to fill up the donor form and go to the school clinic for the physical check up. To my surprise he got deferred :( (not because he is sick, but because he took some medications)
Finding a healthy/fit donor is HARD, but you know what is HARDER? it is finding a person who is whole heartedly willing to DONATE. Everyone seems to be afraid of it. Just by hearing the word Blood donor they immediately say NO and move away as if i have a highly contagious disease that would infect them. I even got silly and annoying answers like : ” I CAN’T, COZ I HAVE A TATTOO ON MY BUTT” , “I CAN’T COZ MY BLOOD IS GREEN” , AND WORST IS “I CANT COZ I DON’T HAVE BLOOD”.
C’Mon people why are you so afraid? i won’t lie and say its Painless. of course you’ll feel pain, but the pain is tolerable, especially if you put in mind that you are actually about to save someones LIFE.
Finally, 2 days before the scheduled date i found a good hearted person willing to donate; someone like me, a regular BLOOD DONOR.
I told him its my First time to use that straw like needle. (im expecting him to back out) but he didnt. He even told me: there’s nothing to worry basta wag ko wawasakin vein niya. STRONG naman daw siya :) (he’s really a nice person)
and then, the day all of us have been waiting for. I got really nervous and stresses by the time na ako na. OO. ako na. TURN ko na! Jai’s (my donor) median and cephalic veins are not prominent yung basilic lang and prominent. I had to choose between the median vein or basilic. But the basilic vein is the most painful. I dont want to risk and puncture the median vein which i could not even palpate. So ayun, kahit masakit basilic vein nalang instead of the median.And since the basilic vein is a moveable vein i have to hold the needle in place until the bag is filled. (Sorry jai.pinili ko basilic because i dont want to make more than one shot in filling up the blood bag.) I know its painful thats why i am so thankful that all of the time i ask you how does it feel you always say “oks lang”.
The most precious and heart warming part is when my teacher told me: Nowie, ang galing. Medtech kana. Congrats :)) - those words may mean nothing to others, but for me those words made me much stronger and more determined of becoming a REGISTERED MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIST.
I learned a lot through that experience. Its something i will never forget. <3
