My recent trip to give blood

I try to give blood as often as I can, since I know how important it is. Imagine my dismay when I'm laying there with the needle in my arm, and the TV is tuned into Faux News. I probably got more Faux exposure during in this one sitting than I've gotten all year long. Holy shit, those people are insipid! I really don't see how anyone can watch that shit on a regular basis.

Another thing that really struck me was filling out the pre-questionaire. I find it quite offensive that they ask men if they've ever had sexual contact with another man since 1977. Yet another question simply asks if you've had sexual contact in the past 12 months with someone who is HIV+. How fucking insulting is that - you can have sex with someone who is HIV+, and a year later you're ok. But any homosexual contact, sorry pal.

It was standard public policy to blame gay men for the existance of AIDS. x(
It probably still is.

If you've sex with someone who is HIV+, you won't be allowed to give blood, period, gay or straight.

edit: Now the highest rates of transmittion aren't even among gay men. The policy is outdated and now is now rather worthless.

But yeah, it is homophobic.

It only asked if you've had sex with someone who is HIV+ within the past 12 months. 12 months was the usual time frame given for most of the questions. So if I had sex with someone HIV+ two years ago, I could have answered "no" to that question in good faith, and unless they specifically asked me afterwards, they wouldn't know.

I had "if you are male and have had sexual contact with another male..."
"if you have had sexual contact with someone who is HIV+".

I don't think there was a time period on that last one.

Either way, all blood is screen for HIV. Many of my gay friends who know they are not HIV+ donate blood and they've never had a problem.

A donor who was recently infected might not yet have produced antibodies, yet have HIV in his blood.

n/t

You can request that the tv be turned off or onto another station. I do it often. I get shocked looks from the post office, and Dr's office, but so what? I complain about fox news whenever it is on. If I'm a customer, I will get my wish honored, or I leave. Make sure you're willing to leave if you face Resistance. It's not worth a big scene, but why patronize an insulting Blood Bank?

And if others are enjoying it, just put up with it. You're not there to change minds, you're there to save a life.

(The ban on gay men is ridiculous. It was instituted back when it was a "gay" disease, and there's never been strong pressure to change it.)

There was a darling little story about some golden retriever who helped save a toddler who wandered from his house. They even did a live "interview" with the family, including the kid and dog.

At least it wasn't Hannity, Coulter, or any of their politically driven shows.

:)

is why so many places, like the blood donation site, consider it necessary to have a TV turned on nonstop during business hours, no matter what the channel it's tuned to. What ever happened to sitting quietly and reading? Why not play classical music, if there's a need to have background noise?

I frequently ask to have a channel changed, if it's on FOX, or turned off completely. If I'm the only one in a particular waiting room I always turn off the TV. I always carry a book or two with me to read during waiting times.

I actually asked this one when I went to donate once and was told that it's to cover the noise from the refrigeration units the blood is stored in and to make it difficult to overhear anyone discussing their medical details with the nurse.

I usually donate at the local university so usually, we have the campus radio station.

And I realize that people say homosexuals are at high risk of AIDS and HIV. But so are heterosexuals. So I didn't have sex with a man lately. But they don't ask me if I solicited a prostitute....

I, as a female, could have unprotected sex with a different man every night for a year, and so long as I never ask them whether they're HIV+, bisexual, IV drug users, etc., I can give blood freely.

Yet two men who've been in a monogamous relationship since the 60s can't.

If you've had sex with a prostitute in 12mos, or have ever been a prostitute, you can't give.

of questions that must be asked. They specifically ban "men who have had sex with another man even one time since 1977," "men and women who have engaged in sex for money or for drugs since 1977," and "persons who have had sex with any person meeting (these) descriptions during the preceding 12 months"

http://www.fda.gov/cber/faq/bldfaq.htm

I just provided to the "Well, I'm gay, why can't I donate?" question is hilarious, in a depressing, black way.

So you will fill the bag faster and they don't need as many cots. :evilgrin:

Regards, Mugu

I can see why you think they are insulting to you but to me, I really don't think the questions are offensive but that they show the level of ignorance of in that clinic. To me, that is a big red flag. They probably don't even know how to handle the blood properly. Imagine someone is in need of blood and these clowns are running this clinic!! Scarry!!!

What if you answer that you do not have HIV when in fact you do? Do they just take people words for it? Gimme a break! Why if some creep decides to donate his/her infected blood to commit a crime?

A small sample of blood from every bag is routinely tested for virtually every disease known to man (including all the Ebola variants!). Here, you have to be registered to give blood (although you can register on the day and it only takes two minutes) so every sample is numbered and connected to you and if the tests spot an "anomoly", you get a polite little letter through the post. This actually happened to a friend of mine (for something far less serious than HIV).

The policy isn't set by the clinic, it's set by the FDA (or the NHS in this country). It was originally put on the books back when HIV/AIDS was considered a "gay disease" and there's never been enough of an outcry to get it changed. I just ignore it and write the occasional nasty letter.

Ignore it.

Seriously. I've been a blood donor for 12 years, I've been bisexual my whole life. The blood is routinely tested for every disease on the f'ing planet anyway. The way it's done here is that when you sit down, you're given a little plastic sheet which says you can't give blood if you are one of these people and gives a list and, in some cases, time limits. You can't give blood for six months after having a tattoo, six months after giving birth and so on but if you've ever had sex with another man (no dates on our version), you can never give blood.

I know for a fact I'm clean so I settle for just ignoring it and occasionally writing nasty letters to the British Donor service.