My First Attempt to Donate Plasma - Part I

Each of us has seen the ads for plasma donation. The ads are eye-catching, especially since they are often placed in the employment seeking section of the newspaper. "Make over $200 donating plasma your first month!" I am a seeker of alternative income. But, would the process be painful? How long would it take? What specific amount would I get paid at my local plasma center? What about the stigma that most plasma donors are downtrodden drug addicts? I decided to gather more information.

Calling Ahead to the Plasma Center for Information

What should I bring?

At 11:00 am, I looked up the telephone number of my local plasma center and called ZLB Plasma. The ZLB employee told me I would need both a driver's license that reflects my current address and a document showing proof of my social security number. If my driver's license had a previous address, I would also need a utility bill reflecting my name and current address. Fortunately, my driver's license is up to date. After searching through a few closets and folders, I located my social security card.

Are there times when the Plasma Center has fewer donors?

I asked the ZLB employee if there were slower times at their center. I was concerned about the downtrodden who might occupy the lobby chairs beside me. Also, I wanted to maximize the hourly pay that I would receive for my time. I figured if there were less people at the donation center, my donation process would be faster. The ZLB employee told me mornings and between noon and 2:00 pm are generally slow. In fact, she said, she was looking out at the lobby right then, and there was no one out there.

How much will I be paid?

Getting down to the nitty gritty, I inquired about the pay. I was informed that first time donors would receive $40 for the first donation and another $40 for the second donation. The two donations must be within the same week, from Sunday through Saturday. For subsequent donations, the pay depended on the weight of the donor, with slightly higher pay going to those who weigh more. Wow, I thought, for the first time ever, I am actually glad I have not shed those few pesky extra pounds. The additional incentive for the third and fourth donations was an extra $5 pay per donation. After that, the donor was considered a regular donor. In my case, that meant I would normally receive $25 and $30 for two regular donations within a one-week period.

How long will it take?

The first donation will take longer than normal, about two hours or more, because of the required medical screening. The medical screening must be done before the first donation and every subsequent year. Thereafter, the donation time should be reduced to about 45 to 90 minutes for each donation.

The Decision Making Process

If the entire process took two hours, that would be an hourly wage of $20 for my first two donations. If it took a bit longer and if I included driving time, I would still come away with a decent hourly rate. I assumed most of the time would be spent leisurely sitting around reading my current book discussion group book The Kite Runner. Our group would meet in a week from today, and I had barely begun reading the book. I could deal with doing something I would be doing anyway and earning some extra money.

I inhaled deeply. I would do it. Putting away the worries about needles and nausea, I grabbed my library copy of The Kite Runner and headed to the Plasma Center.