Carter BloodCare and HOSA hope the season of giving will extend to Friday’s blood drive from 8:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. in the gym with negative O blood in high demand.

“We have already made a lot of effort to spread awareness about the importance of donating blood over the past few weeks,” Miller said. “Hopefully we will get sufficient blood of all types, especially O.”

Employees for Carter BloodCare will be doing all the medical work with HOSA members providing assistance.

“My fellow HOSA officers and I will help facilitate the blood drive by coming in early to help the set up process, staying late to help the clean up process, passing out blood drive passes, monitoring the donors and ensuring they are feeling well after donating along with escorting them back to class safely,” senior Brayden Miller said. “Students should be eating a healthy meal and drinking a lot of water before their time to donate. They should also know that they can receive information about their blood like blood type after the blood drive if they keep the information sheet the phlebotomists will give to them.”  

A phlebotomist takes the donors’ blood using a brand new, sterile needle. This process lasts approximately ten minutes for whole blood and collects about one pint of blood and can save three lives.

Depending on height and weight, students can have the option to donate two pints.

“Sometimes it’s not uncommon to feel a little weak or fatigued after donating,” nurse Emily Mikeska said. “Some people do experience some dizziness, just because of the volume of the blood taken off and that sometimes it’s removed kind of quickly. If you do feel dizzy, you should sit down and lower your head a little bit and then wait until it subsides and then the nausea and stuff, sometimes that will happen, but just kind of keeping yourself hydrated, maybe eating a little bit. Sometimes eating something with a little sugar in it can help too.”

The requirements for giving blood include: minimum age of 16 years-old, weight at least 110 pounds, and haven’t gone out of the country in the last year.

“I just noticed that a lot of people were doing it and it seems like something that’s of little consequence to me and it can help a lot of people in the process,” senior Amer Jusupovic said. “I just felt like it was kind of like my duty to do it.”