Blood Donation at Mayo Clinic

Sharing Mayo Clinic

Blood Donation at Mayo Clinic

By
Joel Streed

January 6, 2010

Every six minutes, a patient at Mayo Clinic receives a transfusion of blood or blood products. There’s an ongoing and never-ending need for blood donors because there is no substitute for blood. The gift of blood is critical for patient survival. People needing surgery, people receiving treatment for cancer, leukemia or other diseases and accident victims all need blood. Your pledge to give blood can save up to three lives.

Jean Townsend is the top female donor at the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Center, having donated more than 26 gallons of blood over the last 40 years. Here she describes her motivation for donation, and shows what is involved in being a donor:

Donating is a safe, simple and easy process. Blood donors can choose to be a whole blood donor or a platelet or plasma donor. The blood you donate with the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program stays right here in our community. Manish Gandhi, M.D., medical director of the center, says blood is one life-saving substance "for which there is no substitute."

Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Center operates three donor centers, which are located downtown at the Hilton Building (across the street from the Mayo Building), at Saint Marys Hospital in the Joseph Building, and at IBM (for IBM employees only.) Appointments are encouraged but walk-ins are welcome. Please join the team and give blood today!