Puget Sound Area Blood Plasma Donation Centers

Plain and simple...blood plasma is used to manufacture therapies to keep people alive. It assists in defending against infection and blood clotting. It is used to treat a variety of diseases and disorders such as: Hemophilia, hepatitis B, immune system deficiency, and tetanus, and used in the treatment of burns, trauma, and shock. Two proteins in plasma have been credited with saving countless lives of wounded World War II soldiers, and continue to help our wounded men and women fighting in Iraq today.

What Plasma Is

Plasma is the clear, liquid part of the blood once it has been separated from blood's other components-red and white blood cells, platelets, etc.-and accounts for approximately 55 percent of the make up of blood. The plasma itself is 90 percent water, and the rest are enzymes, proteins, antibodies, and salt.

There are two ways that plasma can be collected. The first is an automated process called plasmapheresis in which your blood extracted from your body into a machine, which separates the plasma from the other components; your blood cells, etc. are then returned to your body. This produces source plasma, the starting material before it is manufactured into the other therapies.

Recovered plasma is different in the method of collection, as it is comes from whole blood donation. It is also subject to different requirements for storage, dating, labeling, and pooling.

Eligibility Requirements to Donate Plasma

According to DonatingPlasma.org, the eligibility requirements to donate plasma are fairly standard. All plasma donors in the U.S. are required to pass a pre-donation medical exam, go through an extensive medical history screening and are tested for syphilis, hepatitis, and HIV. Donors must also be 18 years of age or older, and weigh no less than 110 pounds.

As donors often donate regularly, protein levels will be tested each time, and must be within acceptable protein and iron levels in order to donate. If a donor has had recent surgery or gotten a tattoo or piercing, these can also become factors in one's ability to donate plasma.

Payment for Plasma Donation

When donating source plasma, donors may be paid. This compensation is not for the plasma, per se, but for the time involved in the process of collection. Plasma donation companies then sell the plasma to pharmaceutical companies to be manufactured into the therapies needed. Whole blood donation centers are usually non-profit entities, so the collection of your blood and its recovered plasma is truly a donation by you.

Where You Can Donate

There are three plasma collection centers in western Washington-Tacoma, Seattle, and Everett--for those who are interested in plasma only donation. They are each open from Monday through Saturday, and closed on Sundays. Call the center nearest to you for hours of operation.

BioMat USA Donor Centers

5015 S. 56th Street, Suites J-O
Tacoma, WA 98409
Phone: 253-473-7021

7726 15th Avenue NW
Seattle, WA 98117
Phone: 206-782-6675

8413 Evergreen
Everett, WA 98208
Phone: 425-267-9800

For those who are interested in whole blood donation, you may contact the American Red Cross Blood Donation Number 1-800-GIVE LIFE (1-800-448-3543) and they can direct you to your nearest blood bank. Or visit http://www.emd.wa.gov/site-general/donations-mgmt/blood.htm for blood donation centers and Red Cross Chapters in your area.

Sources

Biomat USA Website

Donatingplasma.org

Blood Center Phone Numbers