Donations made from donors selected by you are called directed donations.

• Your blood type must be known in order to participate in the program.

• The patient must have a written request from his/her surgeon/physician for directed donations.

• Directed units are specially tagged to ensure that you receive the blood.

• Donors must be at least 18 years old and weigh at least 110 pounds. They must have identification with their name and signature on it.

• If you are a woman of child-bearing age, you should not ask your partner to donate for you.

• To ensure the confidentiality of all donors, information regarding a failure of a unit of blood to meet specific requirements cannot be reported to the physician or to you. Donors will be notified directly of test results that pose a potential health problem.

• Directed donations cannot be made in an emergency. A minimum of 5 to 7 working days is required to process and test the donated blood.

• If all the directed donations are not used in your surgery/transfusion, the blood remaining will be available to treat other patients.