The Pacer

Issue date: 12/9/09 Section: Campus News

Media Credit: Katie Keathley Maketing major Ryan Lanier did his part by giving blood at the UTM Blood Drive outside the UC on Tuesday, Dec. 1.

The sight of Lifeline Blood Service vans parked outside the University Center has become a familiar one throughout the past decade. Last week, the buses made their final rounds of the semester.

"I'm a past Nursing major, so I know the importance and understand the necessity of giving blood," said Ryan Lanier, speaking calmly with needle in arm and feet inclined. Lanier, a Marketing student, has been giving blood for years and donates every chance he gets. So far, he has earned quite a collection of the Lifeline and UTM Blood Donor t-shirts.

Tammy Hurst, Community Services Coordinator for Lifeline, works with University Center Director Steve Vantrease to set up dates for each Blood Drive a year in advance. Different clubs and organizations across campus take turns sponsoring each of the year's five blood drives.

Last Tuesday, December 1, Lifeline was able to draw 120 units of blood while they deferred 31 students, for a total of over 150 donors. Most of the deferrals were for one day and several of those students returned on Wednesday to give blood. On December 2, they drew an additional 91 units and deferred another 37 students, making the grand total of 279 willing donors.

Most of the students deferred were done so because of the following reasons: low blood pressure, a moderate fever, low body weight, general uneasiness, or a low blood-iron count. Iron deficiency anemia, a common blood disorder characterized by a lower than normal amount of red blood cells in the blood, is common among teenage girls and affects nearly 20 percent of the female population, as compared to only 2 percent of males. For this reason, Lifeline personnel recommend that students consume a full meal, rich in iron prior to donating. This is a precaution to prevent nausea, light-headedness and passing-out of donors.

Regardless of the deferrals, Hurst still is pleased with the amount of units they gathered last week.

"This was great for December, especially when donations tend to decrease during the Holidays," says Hurst. Heavy travelling and holiday parties are attributed to the seasonal shortage, which when combined with Christmas shopping and hectic plans often close the plants from which they normally draw from for awhile. "It's a lot of little reasons that add up," Hurst adds.

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