The Puget Sound Blood Center (PSBC) conducted a blood drive on campus yesterday with the intent to collect as much blood as possible before the impending storm keeps donors from reaching collection centers.

They will be on campus today, tomorrow and next Monday to take more donations.

It takes 1,000 donations of 500ml per donor to keep up with the demand for blood at regional hospitals, said Travis Embrey, a blood collection specialist working with the PSBC.

PSBC has 16 mobile programs, nine regional centers and a staff of about 500 employees to obtain this level of donations.

Student contributions from local high schools and colleges make up 10 - 20 percent of all blood donations in Puget Sound.

UW is one of the most consistent donors, Embrey said.

The process of giving blood takes an average of 45 minutes. There is little danger involved with donating blood.

Lightheadedness is the most common reaction and the effect is temporary. While needles are used to extract the blood, employees denied that giving blood is a frightfully painful experience.

“The pain is momentary, but the impact you can make on someone else can last a lifetime,” Embrey said.

Once the PSBC vans are all packed up, the blood is separated into platelets, plasma and red blood cells. These various bodily fluids are then distributed to local area hospitals.

PSBC provides all of the blood for regional hospitals, Embrey said.

Reasons for donating on the UW campus vary from donor to donor.

“I passed out from having my blood drawn before so I wanted to see if I could do this,” said freshman Scott Reed.

Reed was a first-time donor and did not have any complications with the process. First time donors comprise about one-fifth of donors on any given day.

Embrey sees this as indicative of the nature of UW students.

“This generation of kids is so into giving to others,” he said.

PSBC is also involved with bone marrow donations.

There are approximately 3,000 requests for stem cells or bone marrow a day, said Bea Wilson, a volunteer with the PSBC.

“Signing up is as simple as filling out an application and completing a tissue swab of the mouth,” Wilson said.

The tissue swab is used to procure the tissue composition of the donor. At least seven of 10 possible areas of tissue compatibility are needed between a donor and a sick patient.

Unlike giving blood, marrow donors are only called when they are compatible with someone in need.

“When you’re called, you’re called to save a life,” said Wilson.

Wilson stressed the need for ethnically diverse donors because of the different tissue markers of various ethnic groups.

To find out more about the Puget Sound Blood Center, go to www.psbc.org. PSBC also makes weekly appearances on campus and accepts walk-in donors.

Reach reporter Andrew Doughman at andrewdoughman@thedaily.washington.edu.