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Definition

Blood donation, also called blood banking, refers to the process of collecting, testing, preparing, and storing whole blood and blood components intended primarily for transfusion. Blood donors are typically unpaid volunteers, but they may also be paid by commercial blood donation and processing enterprises, such as independent blood banks and donor centers. Blood registry refers to the collection and sharing of data about donated blood and donors. Donors who have been determined to be temporarily or permanently ineligible to donate blood are listed in a confidential national data base known as the Donor Deferral Register. The quality and safety of the U.S. blood supply is governed by physician-established guidelines for the practice of blood banking as found in the Standards of the...